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Grumpy Men Syndrome
Andropause, Male Menopause and Grumpy Men Syndrome are all names for a cluster of symptoms that can affect men as they grow older. However they are not an inevitable part of ageing. Whilst all women go through Menopause, not all men are affected by hormonal issues and the associated symptoms as they age. And interpreting hormonal issues as a specific illness is not really an accurate explanation of the situation either.
This cluster of symptoms. which typically rob a man of his quality of life and negatively impact upon his family and work performance, can arise from a number of different causes. In our experience we have found that there is likely to be a combination of factors that have contributed to the appearance of symptoms commonly attributed to Grumpy Men Syndrome. There is a growing recognition, supported by credible research, that dysfunctioning hormones may be playing a key part, but whether this is as a cause or as an effect of something else is not always clear
Research shows that low testosterone levels can be seen in association with increased risk of heart attack, stroke, impotence, dementia and Alzheimer's disease. A research study that we participated in with Professor Ralph Martins, a recognised world leading expert in Alzheimer's and its causes, showed that restoring robust testosterone levels resulted in arresting and then reversing damaging brain changes that lead to to Alzheimers. So it is clearly important to maintain robust testosterone levels as we age and this applies to women as well as men.
In Canada and Europe, Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) for men, has been effectively used for over 30 years to restore good health. Even so it is agreed internationally that TRT should not be given without thorough pre-screening to ensure safety and relevance. Ongoing monitoring of overall health and of specific risk factors whilst on treatment is also essential.
Whilst it is known that TRT may well stimulate any pre existing prostate or breast cancer, which emphasises the need for knowlegeable pre-screening before and ongoing supervision during treatment, there is no evidence to show that TRT initiates or causes the onset of prostate cancer.
Pharmaceutical testosterone replacement medications are available in a variety of TGA approved forms - patches, pills, cream, capsules and injections. We do not recommend or prescribe compounded hormone preparations, which can be illegal to dispense if there is a comparable properly tested and approved commercial product available.
Compounding of medications is a self regulated domain which has already allowed for many men to be seduced into the purchase of high risk and very expensive testosterone preparations via newspaper advertising and on line and without the benefit of adequate medical diagnosis and supervision.
What makes this sort of activity attractive to profit orientated businesses is the fact that the introduction of extraneous testosterone, in whatever form, has a suppressing effect on a man's production of his own endogenous testosterone, at least while he is on treatment. The trade off as to whether restored quality of life is worth accepting a dependence on a pharmaceutical drug in order to achieve it, is a highly individual consideration and warrants in depth investigation as to causes, some of which may be fixable without resorting to a long term drug solution.
There may well be a better way.
National Well Men Program - 0433 145 690