Hormonal Characteristics of Androgen Status in Males of Different Age Groups

Males (n = 374) aged 20–69 years were divided into five age groups and examined: first group was aged 20–29 years; the second, 30–39 years; the third, 40–49 years; the fourth, 50–59 years; and the fifth, 60–69 years. The average content of total testosterone in the blood serum in all males was 16.1 ± 7 nmol/L. Hormonal traits of androgen deficiency, the frequency of which increased with age, were detected in males of the second group as compared with those of the first group. The frequency of androgen deficiency (total testosterone level <12.1 nmol/L) in the first group was 26.9%; it did not differ in the second, third, and fourth groups (30.6–33.9%). The frequency of androgen deficiency in the fifth group was 44%. The frequency of hormonal traits of hypogonadism (total testosterone level <8 nmol/L) did not differ significantly in groups 1–4 (6.2–9.3%) and increased only in the fifth group (28%). The age-related androgen deficiency was associated in males with a decrease in the androgen function of not only gonads but also adrenal glands, an increase in the level of sex steroid-binding globulin in the blood, and an increase in the metabolism of testosterone to estradiol, and it was accompanied by a compensatory increase in the synthesis of luteinizing hormone in the pituitary gland.