Hormone levels were linked to symptomatic aortic aneurysm risk in men
A UK cohort linked lower total testosterone and higher sex hormone-binding globulin to symptomatic abdominal aortic aneurysm, while leaving causation unresolved.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Lower total testosterone and higher sex hormone-binding globulin were associated with greater risk of symptomatic abdominal aortic aneurysm in this male cohort. The findings describe relationships between baseline blood measurements and later diagnoses. They do not show that hormone differences caused aneurysms or that testosterone treatment would reduce their occurrence.
The observational design cannot establish causation. The abstract does not list the variables included in the adjusted analyses, limiting assessment of how other differences between participants were handled.
What researchers found
Symptomatic abdominal aortic aneurysm
Lowest total-testosterone quartile versus higher quartiles over 15 years, assessed using adjusted Cox regression.
The hormone measures did not agree completely
The association was not equally clear across testosterone measures: the cFT estimate was compatible with no association. This uncertainty should remain visible alongside the clearer patterns for total testosterone and other measures.
Genetic susceptibility was also examined
Participants with higher genetic risk scores and either lower testosterone or higher sex hormone-binding globulin had greater aneurysm risk. This joint association describes another pattern in the cohort; it does not establish a hormone-treatment effect.
The original publication
Association between serum testosterone and related hormones and risk of symptomatic abdominal aortic aneurysm in male participants from the UK Biobank.
Liu Y, Guo H, Pu H et al.
J Vasc Surg · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 40975247
- Record checked
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