started TRT and how have questions

[RJTX]

Hi
I stomped over this site which has excellent information. Thank you.
I'm now 46 years old and discovered low T at 40. kind of resisted treatment until last Sept. I started TRT last Sept. .5 cc /week on 200mg/ml injection.

After three months results are good and I have a few questions.

pre-treatment
==========
Hematocrit 43.8 % 37.0-49.0
Tests: (5) Testosterone, Free/Total with SHBG (100125)
Testosterone, Total [L] 187 NG/DL 241-827
! SHBG 17.09 NMOL/L 13.00-71.00
! Testosterone Free, Calc
[L] 4.9 NG/DL 6.0-27.0


after 3-month of .5 cc /week on 200mg/ml injection
Hematocrit 47.5 % 37.0-49.0
Tests: (6) Testosterone, Free/Total with SHBG (100125)
Testosterone, Total 800 NG/DL 241-827
! SHBG 16.03 NMOL/L 13.00-71.00
! Testosterone Free, Calc
25.0 NG/DL 6.0-27.0


1) I have two young boys. I wonder if low T is genetic. at what age should you test them if this is genetic?
2) since on .5 cc 200mg/ml (100mg /week) produced such high results, I actually started reducing it to .4 cc (80mg/week) a couple of weeks ago. I seem to do OK for past 2 weeks. the reason I made the change is that. I inject at night. but the first day after injection always produces some discomfort for me such as a bit dizziness or a little elevated heart rate (I didn't test but just feel it). after doing .4 cc with 20% cut, it seems to get better. anybody see issue of that? my thought is that with .5cc/week, my levels shot to very high end of the range for my age group. so it still will be OK with reduce dosage.
3) My primary physician did this treatment for me. I saw all kind of other things and test discussed here. My primary physician doesn't seem to be too concerned because he said he treats many similar patient. should I consult a specialist after 6 months of treatment which is due end of March?

Thank you.

 

[Pacman]

1) I've never heard of hypogonadism being genetic. It's very possible that if in your children's DNA you passed on high amounts of SHBGs, they will have lower testosterone than average (but lower than average doesn't necessarily mean hypogonadism), or you may have a very rare genetic disease that is hereditary that causes low testosterone levels in your offspring. Keep in mind that there is a range of healthy levels of testosterone. Even if your children have "lower than average" T levels, it may not be at the level which is considered hypogonadism, which means that they may not be prone to the many diseases that a male with low T is prone to.

2) The general consensus in the TRT community is that you should take just enough to gain maximum benefit and not more. In general, I can tell you that your own decrease is considered a good thing if you can reap the same benefits and have healthy T levels at the decreased dosage, BUT I do not know your entire medical history and specific details of your treatment. So my input here is that it is most likely okay, but you should definitely notify your doctor of any changes in protocol that you make.

3) Yes, you should be seeing a specialist for TRT, not a primary physician. TRT affects your entire system, and it is a life long treatment. If you do not pay attention to everything (i.e. T + E levels, RBCs, WBCs, LH/FSH, A1C, cholesterol, prostate exams every so often, etc etc), you may overlook some important things and will potentially be damaged from the treatment. Get a doctor who specializes in TRT, or at the very least in hormones.

 

[Pacman]

Oh, and one more thing: hypogonadism can develop. Even if you test your boys at [BLANK] age, it can happen later in time. Low testosterone produces many symptoms coherent with a lot of other conditions. If you start to see depression, low energy, weight gain, etc.. - then T levels should be one of the things you should check. If none of these symptoms appear, then it is not something you should be too worried about.