Sex hormone concentrations in men with angiographically assessed coronary artery disease--relationship to obesity and body fat distribution.

The relationship between circulating sex hormone levels and the occurrence of coronary artery disease (CAD) was studied in a group of 274 men undergoing coronary angiography. Hormone levels in men with CAD (n = 200) were compared to those in men found to be free of coronary lesions (n = 74). No significant differences were found for serum concentrations of estradiol, total testosterone, sex-hormone-binding globulin, free androgen index, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, or cortisol between the two groups. Serum androgens were negatively correlated to age in both groups, whereas estradiol was weakly associated with total cholesterol in the group of men without CAD. No consistent associations were detected between sex hormone levels and the degree of obesity or the distribution of body fat, the latter being assessed by the ratio of waist-to-hip circumferences. The results of this study do not support a significant role of sex steroid hormones in coronary artery disease in men.