Low Testosterone is Associated with an Increased Risk of MACE Lethality in Subjects with Erectile Dysfunction

Although testosterone (T) has been suggested to play a protective role against the development of atherosclerosis, studies demonstrating an association between low T and incident major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) are scanty in the general population and absent in subjects with erectile dysfunction (ED). To investigate whether low T in subjects with ED predict incident fatal or nonfatal MACE. This is an observational prospective cohort study evaluating a consecutive series of 1687 patients attending our andrological unit for ED. Patients were interviewed using the structured interview on erectile dysfunction (SIEDY) and ANDROTEST structured interviews measuring components relative to ED and hypogonadal-related symptoms, respectively. Total T was evaluated at baseline. Information on MACE was obtained through the City of Florence Registry Office. Among the patients studied, 5.2, 13.8, and 22.4% were hypogonadal according to different thresholds (T