Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Testosterone Deficiency

• Main Authors: Sung-Dong Kim, Kyu-Sup Cho
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korean Society for Sexual Medicine and Andrology 2019-01-01
• Series: The World Journal of Men's Health
• Subjects: Continuous positive airway pressure; Erectile dysfunction; Sexual dysfunction; physiological; Sleep apnea; obstructive; Testosterone

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder characterized by intermittent hypoxia and sleep fragmentation. OSA in middle-aged men is often associated with decreased testosterone secretion, together with obesity and aging. Although OSA treatment does not reliably increase testosterone levels in most studies, OSA treatment with testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) may not only improve hypogonadism, but can also alleviate erectile/sexual dysfunction. However, because TRT may exacerbate OSA in some patients, patients should be asked about OSA symptoms before and after starting TRT. Furthermore, TRT should probably be avoided in patients with severe untreated OSA.