Hormonal
Transdermal testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) increases lean body mass (LBM) in men with spinal cord injury (SCI) and hypogonadism, with effects comparable to or greater than those seen in able-bodied elderly men.
If you have a spinal cord injury and low testosterone, transdermal testosterone therapy (gel or patch) can help you gain muscle mass, potentially more than it does in older able-bodied men. The key is using the right dose to keep your testosterone levels in the normal range, which typically requires daily application and regular blood tests to adjust the dose. While it helps muscle, it may not significantly reduce fat mass in SCI patients, so managing diet and activity remains important.
Twelve months of TRT (by testosterone patch) restored serum total T to physiological levels in persons with SCI and resulted in concurrent improvements in total LBM (3.5 kg). This considerable increase in LBM was higher than values reported in elderly hypogonadal men.
Why this rating
Based on a mini-review pooling data from multiple RCTs in able-bodied men and one small-scale trial in SCI patients; evidence quality is limited by small sample sizes in the specific SCI population.
Source
Body composition changes with testosterone replacement therapy following spinal cord injury and aging: A mini review
Tom E. Nightingale et al. · Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine · 2017
DOI 10.1080/10790268.2017.1357917
More from this paper
- Transdermal TRT has a minimal or inconsistent effect on reducing fat mass (FM) in men with spinal cord injury, unlike its consistent effect on increasing lean body mass.Moderate
- Transdermal TRT improves metabolic markers, including resting energy expenditure (REE) and HDL cholesterol, in men with spinal cord injury, potentially reducing cardiovascular disease risk.Moderate
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