Changing testosterone levels in ageing men

Recognition and treatment of men with hypoandrogenism or androgen deficiency (established on solid clinical and laboratory evidence of testicular or pituitary disease) is of proven benefit, irrespective of the men’s age. However, the entity of age-related hypoandrogenism – so-called ‘partial androgen deficiency of the ageing male’, ‘andropause’ or ‘late-onset hypogonadism’ – is less well understood. As a background to consideration of its diagnosis and treatment, the effects of ageing and related factors on testosterone levels in older men are reviewed in this article.