Teh One Who Knocks
03-01-2013, 12:19 PM
By Daniel Piotrowski - news.com.au
http://i.imgur.com/HqHOkNP.jpg
ARE you a grumpy old man? Don't worry, it could be a medical condition.
Many men get irritable, pack on the kilos and suffer from reduced sex drive as they get older, but Sydney sex health doctor Michael Lowy said this could be a sign of a condition called androgen deficiency.
"Low testosterone can be part of 'grumpy old male syndrome' where older men they lose muscle tone, they can be depressed, don't feel so good," Dr Lowy said. "We tend to miss [these symptoms] because we just say to them, 'you're old'."
Dr Lowy said men should discuss these symptoms with doctors, particularly as less than half of Australian men have an annual health check-up - compared to nearly two thirds of women. Even GPs sometimes miss diagnosing the disorder, he said.
WA youth worker Dave Grubb, 34, has the genetic disorder Klinefelter's syndrome, where his body does not produce enough testosterone. Doctors were unable to diagnose why he was constantly "being a sad sack", Mr Grubb said, and he was only diagnosed because his nephew was studying Klinefelter's syndrome.
"He came to me with results and said 'get the doctor to check it out'," Mr Grubb said.
Mr Grubb said the condition had interfered with his relationships and that "nobody in my circle or my town knew anything about what I had".
In most men testosterone levels naturally begin to drop after age 30. A Medical Journal of Australia article found the low testosterone condition typically affects around one in 200 adult men.
A new solution for the disorder, Axiron, will be available through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme from today.
http://i.imgur.com/HqHOkNP.jpg
ARE you a grumpy old man? Don't worry, it could be a medical condition.
Many men get irritable, pack on the kilos and suffer from reduced sex drive as they get older, but Sydney sex health doctor Michael Lowy said this could be a sign of a condition called androgen deficiency.
"Low testosterone can be part of 'grumpy old male syndrome' where older men they lose muscle tone, they can be depressed, don't feel so good," Dr Lowy said. "We tend to miss [these symptoms] because we just say to them, 'you're old'."
Dr Lowy said men should discuss these symptoms with doctors, particularly as less than half of Australian men have an annual health check-up - compared to nearly two thirds of women. Even GPs sometimes miss diagnosing the disorder, he said.
WA youth worker Dave Grubb, 34, has the genetic disorder Klinefelter's syndrome, where his body does not produce enough testosterone. Doctors were unable to diagnose why he was constantly "being a sad sack", Mr Grubb said, and he was only diagnosed because his nephew was studying Klinefelter's syndrome.
"He came to me with results and said 'get the doctor to check it out'," Mr Grubb said.
Mr Grubb said the condition had interfered with his relationships and that "nobody in my circle or my town knew anything about what I had".
In most men testosterone levels naturally begin to drop after age 30. A Medical Journal of Australia article found the low testosterone condition typically affects around one in 200 adult men.
A new solution for the disorder, Axiron, will be available through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme from today.