The Effect of Testosterone Supplementation on Rehabilitation Outcomes

Summary

The objective of this project is to determine the safety and efficacy of testosterone supplementation as an adjunct to traditional rehabilitation therapy in the care of deconditioned older men. Our long range goal is to determine whether other hormones (e.g., combined testosterone and growth hormone) are helpful as an adjunct to traditional rehabilitation therapy.

This project is important to the VA health care system because 38% of American veterans are aged (age \> 65 years), bioavailable testosterone is diminished in older age men, low testosterone is associated with impaired muscle strength, and lack of muscle strength hinders rehabilitation. Older men who are not successfully rehabilitated often get admitted to nursing homes for long term care, at a cost of approximately $40,000/year. Payment for long term care is currently one of our most difficult health care problems. If testosterone supplementation improves rehabilitation outcomes, as our pilot data suggest it will, patients will be more satisfied and long-term care financial resources will be saved.

We will conduct a randomized, placebo-controlled trial to test the hypothesis that supplementation with testosterone improves rehabilitation outcomes in deconditioned older men. Specifically, we will screen all hospitalized older men with delayed discharge from the hospital (\> 7 day hospital stay). Men who have at least one new impairment in their ability to perform activities of daily living (e.g., inability to walk), low serum testosterone concentration, and no contraindications (e.g., prostate or breast cancer) will be offered the opportunity to participate. Study participants will be randomized to receive either testosterone (5 mg transdermally each night) or placebo (matching transdermal patch) daily in a double-blind fashion for the duration of their hospital course (expected average duration of study is 29 days). Subjects will then receive their rehabilitation as usual, with all members of the health care team blinded as to whether the subject is receiving testosterone or placebo. At baseline, weekly, at discharge, and at 6 and 12 months after discharge, subjects will be assessed using validated measures (i.e., Functional Independence Measure - FIM). Our hypothesis is that testosterone supplementation, as an adjunct to traditional rehabilitation therapy, will improve rehabilitation outcomes.

Conditions

• Aging
• Frail Elderly
• Rehabilitation

Interventions

PROCEDURE

Testosterone supplement

Sponsors & Collaborators

• US Department of Veterans Affairs

  lead FED

Principal Investigators

• David Wolff, Ph.D. Special Assistant to the Director · Program Analysis and review Section (PARS), VA Rehabilitation Research & Development Service

• Vicki Mongiardo, Program Analyst · Program Analysis and Review Section (PARS), VA Rehabilitation Research and Development Service

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

65 Years

Sex

MALE

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2001-04-30

Completion

2004-03-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations