Low testosterone levels are inversely correlated with carotid artery plaque formation in elderly women

OBJECTIVE: To study the relationship between serum testosterone levels and the plaque formation of the carotid artery in a population-based cohort of independently living healthy women above 60 years of age. METHODS: Analysis of the healthy elders from a population-based cohort study in 9 communities of Beijing. Carotid intima-media thickness and atherosclerotic plaques were determined ultrasonographically. Serum testosterone levels were measured by immunoassay. The data were analyzed with ANOVA and logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: There was an inverse correlation between testosterone and plaque formation in old females (P < 0.01), while no association was found in males. Female with testosterone levels in the lowest quartile (< 0.49 nmol/L) had more risk of plaque formation (OR = 3.805, P < 0.01) after adjusted with age and other traditional factors of atherosclerosis. CONCLUSION: Testosterone concentrations are negatively associated with carotid artery atherosclerosis in old women in Beijing, experimental and prospective studies are needed to determine the possible therapeutic role of testosterone in atherosclerosis.