Is Testosterone Therapy Associated with Increased VTE Risk?

Men on testosterone therapy have a significantly higher risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) within the first 6 months of treatment compared with those not on testosterone, according to a new study. The risk declines after the initial 6 months of treatment.

For the study, 19,215 men with confirmed VTE who were being treated at 370 primary care practices in the United Kingdom were matched by age and VTE risk factors with 909,530 controls.
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Patients were categorized into 3 groups: those on treatment currently (subcategorized as more or less than 6 months), those who had recent treatment but were no longer on treatment, and those without treatment in the previous 2 years.

Overall, 0.36% of VTE cases occurred among men on current treatment and 0.11% of men after recent treatment.

Men taking testosterone for less than 6 months had a 63% higher risk for VTE than men who did not take testosterone. However, men taking testosterone for a longer duration and those who had recent treatment did not have an increased risk of VTE.

“Starting testosterone treatment was associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism, which peaked within six months and declined thereafter,” the researchers concluded.

—Amanda Balbi

Reference:

Martinez C, Suissa S, McGill J, et al. Testosterone treatment and risk of venous thromboembolism: population based case-control study [published online November 30, 2016]. BMJ. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.i5968.