Virilization, excess body hair and menstrual irregularities in women; many effects, e.g. voice change may be permanent after prolonged therapy.
SIDE EFFECTS
Ø Virilization, excess
body hair and menstrual irregularities in women; many effects, e.g. voice
change may be permanent after prolonged therapy.
Ø Acne: in males and
females.
Ø Frequent, sustained
and often painful erections in males in the beginning of therapy, subside
spontaneously after sometime.
Ø Oligozoospermia with
moderate doses given for a few weeks.
Ø Precocious puberty and
shortening of stature due to early closure of epiphysis—if given to children
for more than a few weeks.
Ø Edema: especially when
large doses are used in patients with heart or kidney disease. It is rare with
the doses used for hypogonadism.
Ø Cholestatic jaundice:
occurs with methyltestosterone and other 17alkyl substituted derivatives
(fluoxymesterone and some anabolic steroids like oxymetholone, stanozolol) in a
dose dependent manner, but not with parenterally used esters of testosterone. For
this reason, the latter are preferred, especially for prolonged therapy.
However, jaundice is reversible on discontinuation.
Ø Hepatic carcinoma:
incidence is higher in patients who have received long-term methyltestosterone
or other oral androgens.
Ø Gynaecomastia: may
occur, especially in children and in patients with liver disease. This is due
to peripheral conversion of testosterone to estrogens. Dihydrotestosterone does
not cause gynaecomastia because it is not converted to estradiol.
Ø Lowering of HDL and rise
in LDL levels, especially with 17αalkylated analogues.
Contraindications
Androgens are
contraindicated in carcinoma of prostate and male breast, liver and kidney
disease and during pregnancy (masculinization of female foetus). They should be
used cautiously in patients who may be adversely affected by fluid
retention—such as CHF, epilepsy, migraine.
Related Topics
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