Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is often associated with male hypogonadism. The role of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) in T2DM has not been completely clarified. To systematically analyse the relationship between androgen levels and T2DM by reviewing and meta-analyzing available prospective and cross-sectional studies. In addition, a specific meta-analysis on the metabolic effects of TRT in available randomised clinical trials (RCTs) was also performed.</...

Objectives: Recommending general dynamic penile color doppler ultrasound (D-PCDU) screening in patients with erectile dysfunction (ED) has been questioned due to an inadequate cost-benefit ratio. The aim of the present study is to asses the validity of different risk scores in the identification of patients being screened for arteriogenic ED at D-PCDU.Design and methods: A consecutive series of 738 (mean age 53.6±9.2 years) patients with ED was stud...

Objectives: The aim of present study is to determine psychobiological characteristics of sexual dysfunction (SD) associated with metabolic syndrome (MS; as defined by National Cholesterol Education Program’s Adult Treatment Panel III, NCEP-ATP-III criteria) in a consecutive series of 803 male out-patients.Methods: Several hormonal, biochemical and instrumental (penile doppler ultrasound, PDU) parameters were studied, along with psycho...

Objectives: Radical prostatectomy is an effective therapy for men with clinically localized prostate cancer. A significant number of men develop erectile dysfunction after radical prostatectomy (PPED) due to intraoperatory cavernous nerve injury causing hypoxia and fibrosis of corpus cavernosus. We established an experimental model of bilateral cavernous neurotomy (BCN) in the rat in order to investigate whether sildenafil treatment in PPED patients could prevent penile tissue...

Introduction: Although in females of infertile couples abnormal PRL has a definitive role in the medical flow-chart, its role in males is less clear. Animal models suggest that PRL does not play a major role in male reproduction, although its trophic action on male accessory glands was often observed. Studies in humans are scanty. We systematically evaluated possible clinical and ultrasound correlates of PRL in males of infertile couples.Methods: Out of ...

Introduction: ‘Prostatitis-like symptoms’ (PLS) are a cluster of bothersome conditions defined as ‘perineal and/or ejaculatory pain or discomfort and National Institutes of Health-Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI) pain subdomain score ≥4’ (Nickel’s criteria). PLS may originate from the prostate or from other portions of the male genital tract. Although PLS could be associated with ‘prostatitis’, they should not be confused. T...

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the leading causes of tumor death in Western countries. Modifications in expression and functional alterations that involve the androgen receptor (AR) have been implicated in the progression of PCa and in the development of androgen independence; however, the role of AR in these processes is still debated, as contrasting results have been reported in several studies evaluating the relation between AR expression and disease progression (Tamburrin...

Introduction: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a diagnostic category which identifies subjects at high risk for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, erectile dysfunction (ED) and male hypogonadism. However, MetS impact on male infertility has been poorly studied. We systematically evaluated possible associations between MetS and clinical characteristics in men with couple infertility.Methods: Out of 367 consecutive subjects, 351 men without genetic abnormal...

Tests detecting sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) could be included in the clinical management of male infertility. TUNEL/PI is an innovative version of the TUNEL assay, and it is able to distinguish between two different populations: PI brighter and PI dimmer sperm. The aims of the study were to determine the average value of SDF in recruited men of proven fertility and to verify whether SDF discriminates between fertile and subfertile men independently from semen quality. In add...

Introduction: Few randomised clinical studies have evaluated the impact of diet and physical activity on testosterone levels in obese men with conflicting results. Conversely, studies on bariatric surgery in men generally showed an increase in testosterone levels. The aim of the present study is to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of available trials on the effect of body weight loss on sex hormones levels.Methods: An extensive Medline searc...