Vale Health Clinic
What are the normal levels of testosterone?
The normal range of testosterone levels in adult men is generally between 300 and 1,000 nanograms per deciliter (ng/dL). However, this range varies depending on the laboratory that is performing your test.
Additionally, some experts consider a range of 240-950 ng/dL as normal. It is important to note that testosterone levels can fluctuate during the day, with levels being highest in the morning and lowest in the evening.
Certain factors, such as obesity, sleep disturbances, and medications, can all affect testosterone levels.
Make sure to consult with your primary care physician to determine if your testosterone levels are within the normal range and to evaluate any symptoms or concerns related to testosterone levels.
How do you know if you need testosterone replacement therapy
While most people think of testosterone as a hormone that uniquely influences the reproductive system, it is actually more important than that!
Testosterone plays a major role in the health of men, giving them many of the male characteristics, such as hair growth, strong bones, and lean muscle mass.
Here are the most common symptoms seen in patients with low testosterone levels:
Erectile dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction is a common finding in patients with hypogonadism. However, your physician will make sure it’s not the result of another underlying disease, and most importantly, not psychogenic in nature.
Decreased libido
Testosterone is the hormone that increases sex drive in men, so it would make sense for low testosterone levels to cause decreased libido.
Hair loss
The hair pattern in some regions of the male’s body is the result of testosterone. For instance, having chest hair, a beard, and a mustache, are all the results of high testosterone levels.
Thus, hair loss in regions that used to be hairy can point your physician toward the diagnosis.
Infertility
The Leydig cells in the testicles need a signal from testosterone to produce sperm. Hypogonadism will cause the number of sperm cells to drop.
While infertility could have several causes and may be secondary to other medical conditions, low testosterone is always on the list of differential diagnoses.
Fragile bones
Osteoporosis is a condition in which bone mineral density (BMD) is low. Consequently, you may experience fractures after minimal trauma.
Typically, a small amount of testosterone gets transformed into estrogen, which is a well-established bone protector. However, when you’re already dealing with low testosterone levels, your body won’t sacrifice it to produce estrogen. As a result, your bones become fragile and fractures follow.
Muscle atrophy
Testosterone is essential in the stimulation of growth hormones to induce muscle growth. Its absence produces the exact opposite result – Muscle atrophy.
Fatigue
Testosterone is indispensable for producing energy and the metabolism of macronutrients. In fact, most patients with hypogonadism experience unexplained fatigue early on in the disease process.
Unfortunately, this symptom is extremely unspecific, which can trick physicians to miss the diagnosis.
Decreased mental acuity
Testosterone receptors are spread throughout the body, including the brain. This hormone stimulates mental vigilance and concentration.
For this reason, low levels of testosterone will make the patient feel “slow”.
Mood swings
Also a common symptom of hypogonadism, mood swings affect men when their testosterone levels are low.
As you may expect, this symptom can be overlooked very easily.
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