Testosterone for Men with Alzheimer’s?

There have been sporadic reports in the past of improvement in Alzheimer symptoms in men given testosterone, but the latest study fails to support the idea. Sixteen men with Alzheimer’s had testosterone gel or dummy gel (placebo) applied to their skin for 24 weeks. There were no significant changes in mental functioning (cognitive scores), but there was delayed deterioration in a visual-spatial functioning test – e.g. copying a pattern onto paper – in those on testosterone; however, this apparent benefit didn’t hold up when comparisons were made with healthy people of the same age.

The caregivers, surprisingly, reported the only significant effect of testosterone in the Alzheimer patients. Even though the men themselves didn’t notice any difference, the caregivers found that their patients’ quality-of-life scores improved, while those of the placebo patients deteriorated over the 6 months. The authors of the study are cautious about recommending testosterone for all Alzheimer patients based on this study, but if the patient has a poor quality-of-life score and his serum testosterone level is low, why not try it?