Low testosterone linked to type 1 diabetes

MELBOURNE, March 28 (UPI) -- Low testosterone levels are common in men with type 1 diabetes, Australian researchers said.

The study was based on a survey of 580 men with type 2 diabetes and 69 men with type 1 diabetes. A subgroup of 262 men with type 2 diabetes was then reassessed after six months. Testosterone levels were measured from blood samples.

The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, also confirmed reduced testosterone levels in men with type 2 diabetes.

Study leader Dr. Mathis Grossmann of the University of Melbourne said the findings suggest a direct link between insulin resistance and reduced testosterone.

"As testosterone deficiency may contribute to impaired performance, mood, and libido, as well as have adverse impact on cardiovascular risk, these findings demonstrate the presence of a significant and unrecognized problem among men with diabetes," Grossmann said in a statement.

The researchers caution that the benefits and risks of using testosterone replacement therapy to try to reduce insulin resistance or the symptoms of hypogonadism -- a defect of the reproductive system that results in lack of function of the testes -- are currently unknown and still to be defined by large, long-term clinical trials.