Correlation between sex hormone levels and obesity in the elderly male.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the levels of sex hormones and androgen receptor (AR) in elderly male patients and to explore a possible correlation with obesity. METHODS: The cross-sectional study included 314 Elderly males (age ≥ 65 year). Of these subjects, 104 were healthy (age range 65-92 year; mean 71.38 ± 5.154 year), 74 were obese (65-87 year; 71.32 ± 4.74 year), and 111 were overweight (65-85 year; 71.43 ± 5.03 year). The following parameters were measured: total testosterone (TT), free testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), estradiol (E2), luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone and AR. RESULTS: (i) The levels of TT and SHBG in the obesity group were significantly lower than those in non-obese subjects. (ii) Body mass index (BMI) negatively correlated with TT and SHBG. (iii) Multiple regression analysis revealed that TT (ß: -0.230; p = 0.045) and SHBG (ß: -0.163; p = 0.02) were statistically correlated with BMI. CONCLUSION: Testosterone levels in the obese population were significantly lower than in the non-obese population and there is a significant association between testosterone levels and the extent of obesity.