Heart failure accelerates male 'menopause' four times

Heart failure accelerates the ageing process and brings on early menopause or andropausal syndrome (AS) in men, a new study has found.
Researchers said AS also referred to as male 'menopause', was four times more common in men with heart failure.
As men get older they are more likely to suffer from AS, androgen deficiency in the ageing male (ADAM), or late-onset hypogonadism, researchers said at the Heart Failure Congress 2013, in Lisbon, Portugal.
Researchers said men with AS have decreased levels of anabolic hormones, including testosterone, and it has been suggested that these hormone deficiencies are what cause the clinical symptoms.

The symptoms of AS according to the Ageing Male Symptom Rating Scale can be divided into three categories: sexual (erectile dysfunction, problems with libido, decrease in beard growth, feelings of 'having passed the zenith of life'), psychological (feeling discouraged, depressed, irritable, anxious, nervous), and somato-vegetative (joint and muscle complaints, sweating, need for more sleep, sleep disturbances, weakness, exhaustion).
Heart failure increases with age. Deficiencies of anabolic hormones are common in men with systolic heart failure, leading to reduced exercise capacity, depression and poor prognosis, researchers said.

They compared the prevalence of AS and the severity of andropausal symptoms between 232 men with systolic heart failure aged 40-80 years and 362 age-matched healthy peers.

The magnitude of andropausal symptoms (psychological, sexual and somato-vegetative) was assessed using the Ageing Males' Symptoms (AMS) Rating Scale and AS was diagnosed if the total AMS score was 50 points or more.
They found that AS affected almost one-third of men with heart failure, regardless of their age group. In men aged 40-59 years, heart failure led to a four-fold increase in the prevalence of AS and an increase in the severity of sexual and somato-vegetative andropausal symptoms.
Men aged 60-80 years with and without heart failure had a similar prevalence of AS and severity of andropausal symptoms. Among men with systolic heart failure, the prevalence of AS was similar in both age groups.

Researchers concluded that heart failure accelerates the natural process of ageing and favours early onset of AS.
"Heart failure leads to anabolic hormone deficiencies at a relatively young age and thereby accelerates male ageing and the development of AS. These patients have poor quality of life and need endocrinological and sexual counselling," Professor Ewa A Jankowska said.