Hey guys, been a lurker here for around 2 years, I was wanting to know what some veterans thoughts are regarding my lab work. Been dealing with chronic fatigue syndrome for around a year now with erectile dysfunction (can’t get hard and zero sex drive), finally got my doctor to order some labs, saw an endocrinologist and he basically said everything seems fine as far as my pituitary function goes, but here are my lab results. Also was prescribed to take Viagra 100mg as needed around 3 months ago, which don’t get me wrong, it works, but just because I am able to get an erection now doesn’t mean I want to be sexually active. Started icing my testicles around a month ago trying to improve testosterone levels, not sure if it is helping or not, but my endocrinologist told me to discontinue that, also asked about starting aphrodisiacs to try and increase libido, and he said I would more than likely be shelling out money for supplements that don’t work. My endocrinologist believes something else may be attributing to my current symptoms since my total testosterone is in range. Current stats are as follows: 6 foot 1 (185cm) 185 pounds (84 kg) and been training for around 4 years now and currently about 14% body fat.
TT: 369 ng/dL Ref range: 264-916
FT: 5.8 pg/mL Ref range: 9.3-26.5
SHBG: 40.68 nmol/L (7-49)
FSH: 2.4 mIU/mL (1.5-12.4)
LH: 3.44 mIU/mL (1.7-8.6)
Prolactin: 3.5 ng/mL (4.04-15.2)
Thyrotropin: 0.731 mcIU/mL (0.465-4.680)
Vitamin D, 25-Hydroxy: 51.7 ng/mL (29-100)
In range is far from healthy, or optimal. Yours is low, along with high-ish shbg. Were me, I’d try TRT
Your total is low and due to the high shbg your free t is below range. Free-t is more important than your total as is it is the active portion of your testosterone. I don’t know much about prolactin, but that is below range as well which possibly could also contribute to your symptoms. Like I said I don’t know much about it though, so maybe not. Someone else with more knowledge of prolactin could answer towards that.
Thanks for the reply. Definitely been considering a small therapeutic cycle to see if that does alleviate my current symptoms, which I have no issues with. The main problem with starting TRT at my age I’m concerned with is running into fertility issues later (where I may need to end up coming off TRT to try and improve fertility chances). Every doctor I have seen so far isn’t really interested in actually treating me or looking into a problem, always get a you’re 22, young and healthy, whereas I feel like am old man with my joints always aching and always feeling tired. Getting my test levels checked again tomorrow to see if there has been a noticeable improvement since my last test was in April and have placed myself into a hypercaloric state and been icing my testicles since then.
I was feeling the same way, granted I am older than you. Every morning I was limping down the stairs because my ankles were so stiff and sore, TRT alleviated that. I didn’t see an E2 measurement but I would not be surprised if you are below range there as well, which would contribute to the sore joints.
Appreciate the reply, so far I have tried heat therapy, massage therapy, chiropractic therapy, was prescribed naproxen for a while, but then I stopped taking it once I saw a study regarding longterm NSAID use leads to decreased testosterone levels. Currently looking into taking curcumin to help with inflammation. My E2 was not checked, unsure why but I imagine you’re theory is correct. From what I have read online free testosterone is more conducive for muscle building than total testosterone, and many males also experience hypogonadal symptoms with labwork similar to mine (In range Total T low Free T). According to my endocrinologist low prolactin isn’t really a problem, it’s elevated prolactin that is.
Just googled low prolactin in men and this popped up
Not trying to web md you, but something to think about
The Free T isn’t in range, its below range. The Total T is inert, the Free T is where the rubber meets the road. A low normal LH on repeated testing along with low Free T supports a low-T diagnosis.
You need a new doctor asap because your doctor is ignoring the Free T result and only focusing on the Total T. Your FSH (fertility) is really low for a 22 year old, surprised no one is concerned about that.
It will be tough to find a doctor willing to prescribe a 22 year old TRT.
You may have to consider going private and paying for treatment. There are a ton of reputable clinics that would prescribe TRT to you at these levels without hesitation.