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Joan Stephenson, PhD

JAMA. 2008;299(15):1764.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Older men with lower levels of free testosterone may be more likely to experience depression than are men with higher levels of the sex hormone, according to a study by Australian scientists (Almeida O et al. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2008;65[3]:283-289).

The study involved nearly 4000 men aged 71 to 89 years, 203 of whom met criteria for depression. After controlling for such factors as education level and cognitive scores, the researchers found that the odds of depression in men with a free testosterone concentration in the lowest quintile (<6 ng/dL) was nearly 3 times higher than that of men with a free testosterone concentration of at least 10 ng/dL.

A randomized controlled trial is needed to determine whether the link between testosterone and depression is causal, and if it is, "older men with depression may benefit from systematic screening of free testosterone concentration and testosterone supplementation," . . . [Full Text of this Article]