Shehzad Basaria1, Ravi Jasuja1, Grace Huang1, Whitney Wharton1, Hong Pan1, Karol Pencina1, Zhuoying Li1, Thomas G Travison1, Jag Bhawan1, Renaud Gonthier1, Fernand Labrie1, Alain Y Dury1, Carlo Serra1, Allen Papazian1, Michael O'Leary1, Sami Amr1, Thomas W Storer1, Emily Stern1, Shalender Bhasin1. 1. Research Program in Men's Health: Aging and Metabolism (S.Ba., R.K., G.H., K.P., Z.L., C.S., A.P., T.W.S., S.Bh.), Harvard Medical School, Functional Neuroimaging Laboratory (H.P., E.S.), Department of Radiology, and Section of Urology (M.O.), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts 02115; Department of Neurology (W.W.), Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322; Program on Aging (T.G.T.), Hebrew Senior Life, Roslindale, Massachusetts 02131; Department of Dermatology (J.B.), Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts 02118; Endoceutics (R.G., F.L., A.Y.D.), Quebec City, Canada G1V 4M7; and Department of Pathology (S.A.), Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115.
Abstract
CONTEXT: Some men who use finasteride for hair loss report persistent sexual and other symptoms after discontinuing finasteride therapy. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether these persistent symptoms after discontinuation of finasteride use are due to androgen deficiency, decreased peripheral androgen action, or persistent inhibition of steroid 5α-reductase (SRD5A) enzymes. PARTICIPANTS: Finasteride users, who reported persistent sexual symptoms after discontinuing finasteride (group 1); age-matched finasteride users who did not report sexual symptoms (group 2); and healthy men who had never used finasteride (group 3). OUTCOMES: Sexual function, mood, affect, cognition, hormone levels, body composition, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) response to sexually and affectively valenced stimuli, nucleotide sequences of androgen receptor (AR), SRD5A1, and SRD5A2; expression levels of androgen-dependent genes in skin. SETTING: Academic medical center. RESULTS: Symptomatic finasteride users were similar in body composition, strength, and nucleotide sequences of AR, SRD5A1, and SRD5A2 genes to asymptomatic finasteride users and nonusers. Symptomatic finasteride users had impaired sexual function, higher depression scores, a more negative affectivity balance, and more cognitive complaints than men in groups 2 and 3 but had normal objectively assessed cognitive function. Testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, 5α-androstane-3α,17β-diol-glucuronide, testosterone to dihydrotestosterone and androsterone glucuronide to etiocholanolone glucuronide ratios, and markers of peripheral androgen action and expression levels of AR-dependent genes in skin did not differ among groups. fMRI blood oxygen level-dependent responses to erotic and nonerotic stimuli revealed abnormal function in brain circuitry linked to sexual arousal and major depression. CONCLUSIONS: We found no evidence of androgen deficiency, decreased peripheral androgen action, or persistent peripheral inhibition of SRD5A in men with persistent sexual symptoms after finasteride use. Symptomatic finasteride users revealed depressed mood and fMRI findings consistent with those observed in depression.
CONTEXT: Some men who use finasteride for hair loss report persistent sexual and other symptoms after discontinuing finasteride therapy. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether these persistent symptoms after discontinuation of finasteride use are due to androgen deficiency, decreased peripheral androgen action, or persistent inhibition of steroid 5α-reductase (SRD5A) enzymes. PARTICIPANTS: Finasteride users, who reported persistent sexual symptoms after discontinuing finasteride (group 1); age-matched finasteride users who did not report sexual symptoms (group 2); and healthy men who had never used finasteride (group 3). OUTCOMES: Sexual function, mood, affect, cognition, hormone levels, body composition, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) response to sexually and affectively valenced stimuli, nucleotide sequences of androgen receptor (AR), SRD5A1, and SRD5A2; expression levels of androgen-dependent genes in skin. SETTING: Academic medical center. RESULTS: Symptomatic finasteride users were similar in body composition, strength, and nucleotide sequences of AR, SRD5A1, and SRD5A2 genes to asymptomatic finasteride users and nonusers. Symptomatic finasteride users had impaired sexual function, higher depression scores, a more negative affectivity balance, and more cognitive complaints than men in groups 2 and 3 but had normal objectively assessed cognitive function. Testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, 5α-androstane-3α,17β-diol-glucuronide, testosterone to dihydrotestosterone and androsterone glucuronide to etiocholanolone glucuronide ratios, and markers of peripheral androgen action and expression levels of AR-dependent genes in skin did not differ among groups. fMRI blood oxygen level-dependent responses to erotic and nonerotic stimuli revealed abnormal function in brain circuitry linked to sexual arousal and major depression. CONCLUSIONS: We found no evidence of androgen deficiency, decreased peripheral androgen action, or persistent peripheral inhibition of SRD5A in men with persistent sexual symptoms after finasteride use. Symptomatic finasteride users revealed depressed mood and fMRI findings consistent with those observed in depression.
Authors: Aaron McKenna; Matthew Hanna; Eric Banks; Andrey Sivachenko; Kristian Cibulskis; Andrew Kernytsky; Kiran Garimella; David Altshuler; Stacey Gabriel; Mark Daly; Mark A DePristo Journal: Genome Res Date: 2010-07-19 Impact factor: 9.043
Authors: J W Overstreet; V L Fuh; J Gould; S S Howards; M M Lieber; W Hellstrom; S Shapiro; P Carroll; R S Corfman; S Petrou; R Lewis; P Toth; T Shown; J Roy; J P Jarow; J Bonilla; C A Jacobsen; D Z Wang; K D Kaufman Journal: J Urol Date: 1999-10 Impact factor: 7.450
Authors: Julia Sacher; Jane Neumann; Tillmann Fünfstück; Alexandra Soliman; Arno Villringer; Matthias L Schroeter Journal: J Affect Disord Date: 2011-09-03 Impact factor: 4.839
Authors: Nicoletta Cera; Stefano Delli Pizzi; Ezio Domenico Di Pierro; Francesco Gambi; Armando Tartaro; Carlo Vicentini; Giuseppe Paradiso Galatioto; Gian Luca Romani; Antonio Ferretti Journal: PLoS One Date: 2012-06-18 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: Ronald S Swerdloff; Robert E Dudley; Stephanie T Page; Christina Wang; Wael A Salameh Journal: Endocr Rev Date: 2017-06-01 Impact factor: 19.871
Authors: Ralph M Trüeb; Ngoc-Nhi Catharina Luu; Maria Fernanda Reis Gavazzoni Dias; Hudson Dutra Rezende Journal: Skin Appendage Disord Date: 2022-01-10
Authors: Mohit Khera; Jeffrey K Than; James Anaissie; Ali Antar; Weitao Song; Boriss Losso; Alexander Pastuszak; Taylor Kohn; Jorge Rivera Mirabal Journal: Transl Androl Urol Date: 2020-06
Authors: F Borgo; A D Macandog; S Diviccaro; E Falvo; S Giatti; G Cavaletti; R C Melcangi Journal: J Endocrinol Invest Date: 2020-09-19 Impact factor: 4.256
Authors: Tina Kiguradze; William H Temps; Steven M Belknap; Paul R Yarnold; John Cashy; Robert E Brannigan; Beatrice Nardone; Giuseppe Micali; Dennis Paul West Journal: PeerJ Date: 2017-03-09 Impact factor: 2.984