CONTEXT: Changes in androgen levels across the adult female life span and the effects of natural menopause and oophorectomy have not been clearly established. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to document the effects of age on androgen levels in healthy women and to explore the effects of natural and surgical menopause. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A cross-sectional study was conducted of 1423 non-healthcare-seeking women, aged 18-75 yr, randomly recruited from the community over 15 months. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Serum levels by age of total testosterone (T), calculated free T, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, and androstenedione in a reference group of women free of confounding factors. Women in the reference group had no usage of exogenous steroid therapy; no history of tubal ligation, hysterectomy, or bilateral oophorectomy; and no hyperprolactinemia or polycystic ovarian syndrome. The effects of natural and surgical menopause on sex steroid levels were also examined. RESULTS: In the reference population (n = 595), total T, calculated free T, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, and androstenedione declined steeply with age (P < 0.001), with the decline of each being greater in the earlier than the later decades. Examination of serum androgen levels by year in women aged 45-54 yr showed no independent effect of menopausal status on androgen levels. In women aged 55 yr or older, those who reported bilateral oophorectomy and were not on exogenous steroids had significantly lower total T and free T levels than women 55 yr or older in the reference group. CONCLUSIONS: We report that serum androgen levels decline steeply in the early reproductive years and do not vary because a consequence of natural menopause and that the postmenopausal ovary appears to be an ongoing site of testosterone production. These significant variations in androgens with age must be taken into account when normal ranges are reported and in studies of the role of androgens in women.
CONTEXT: Changes in androgen levels across the adult female life span and the effects of natural menopause and oophorectomy have not been clearly established. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to document the effects of age on androgen levels in healthy women and to explore the effects of natural and surgical menopause. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A cross-sectional study was conducted of 1423 non-healthcare-seeking women, aged 18-75 yr, randomly recruited from the community over 15 months. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Serum levels by age of total testosterone (T), calculated free T, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, and androstenedione in a reference group of women free of confounding factors. Women in the reference group had no usage of exogenous steroid therapy; no history of tubal ligation, hysterectomy, or bilateral oophorectomy; and no hyperprolactinemia or polycystic ovarian syndrome. The effects of natural and surgical menopause on sex steroid levels were also examined. RESULTS: In the reference population (n = 595), total T, calculated free T, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, and androstenedione declined steeply with age (P < 0.001), with the decline of each being greater in the earlier than the later decades. Examination of serum androgen levels by year in women aged 45-54 yr showed no independent effect of menopausal status on androgen levels. In women aged 55 yr or older, those who reported bilateral oophorectomy and were not on exogenous steroids had significantly lower total T and free T levels than women 55 yr or older in the reference group. CONCLUSIONS: We report that serum androgen levels decline steeply in the early reproductive years and do not vary because a consequence of natural menopause and that the postmenopausal ovary appears to be an ongoing site of testosterone production. These significant variations in androgens with age must be taken into account when normal ranges are reported and in studies of the role of androgens in women.
Authors: Vei Mah; Diana Marquez; Mohammad Alavi; Erin L Maresh; Li Zhang; Nam Yoon; Steve Horvath; Lora Bagryanova; Michael C Fishbein; David Chia; Richard Pietras; Lee Goodglick Journal: Lung Cancer Date: 2011-04-20 Impact factor: 5.705
Authors: Micol S Rothman; Nichole E Carlson; Mei Xu; Christina Wang; Ronald Swerdloff; Paul Lee; Victor H H Goh; E Chester Ridgway; Margaret E Wierman Journal: Steroids Date: 2010-11-09 Impact factor: 2.668
Authors: Eliana L Sánchez Montoya; Lizaida Hernández; Jennifer L Barreto-Estrada; José G Ortiz; Juan Carlos Jorge Journal: J Sex Med Date: 2010-11 Impact factor: 3.802
Authors: J Segelman; C Buchli; A Svanström Röjvall; P Matthiessen; S Arver; M Bottai; M Ahlberg; R Jasuja; A Flöter-Rådestad; A Martling Journal: Br J Surg Date: 2018-09-12 Impact factor: 6.939
Authors: Laura Costas; Leila Lujan-Barroso; Yolanda Benavente; Naomi E Allen; Pilar Amiano; Eva Ardanaz; Caroline Besson; Heiner Boeing; Bas Bueno-de-Mesquita; Iris Cervenka; Renée T Fortner; Agnès Fournier; Marc Gunter; Sophia Harlid; José María Huerta; Mats Jerkeman; Karin Jirström; Rudolf Kaaks; Anna Karakatsani; Kay-Tee Khaw; Anastasia Kotanidou; Eiliv Lund; Giovanna Masala; Amalia Mattiello; Beatrice Melin; Virginia Menéndez; Neil Murphy; Alexandra Nieters; Kim Overvad; Elio Riboli; Carlotta Sacerdote; Maria-Jose Sánchez; Julie A Schmidt; Sabina Sieri; Anne Tjønneland; Antonia Trichopoulou; Rosario Tumino; Roel Vermeulen; Elisabete Weiderpass; Silvia de Sanjosé; Antonio Agudo; Delphine Casabonne Journal: Am J Epidemiol Date: 2019-02-01 Impact factor: 4.897
Authors: I Gonçalves; C H Alves; T Quintela; G Baltazar; S Socorro; M J Saraiva; R Abreu; C R A Santos Journal: Mol Cell Biochem Date: 2008-06-22 Impact factor: 3.396