Illustration of Hip (Frontal view). Credit score: Wikipedia
Hip fractures, typically a results of a fall, are probably the most severe sort of osteoporotic fracture as a result of they’re accompanied by appreciable ache, lack of muscle and bone energy, decreased mobility and independence with day by day actions, and elevated threat for future fractures and loss of life. Greater than 200,000 American girls yearly expertise hip fractures, and as much as three-quarters of them by no means absolutely regain their capability to renew regular actions like strolling, even after present process weeks of train rehabilitation.
In a urgent effort to check new therapies, researchers carried out a medical trial to see whether or not making use of a testosterone gel with train may enhance perform and mobility in these sufferers. Testosterone is a hormone current in all girls that declines with age and it has results on muscle; subsequently, it was hypothesized that it could increase the advantages of train in the course of the restoration interval.
Outcomes printed in the present day within the journal JAMA Community Open discovered that testosterone gel didn’t enhance bodily perform in comparison with a placebo in older girls who have been participating in a supervised train program and recovering from a hip fracture. Testosterone remedy did seem to have some optimistic results on short-distance mobility, which can require additional examine to substantiate.
“Hip fractures can affect many aspects of function in older people and require multiple strategies to restore function,” mentioned examine co-author and one of many examine principal investigators, Jay Magaziner, Ph.D., MSHyg, Professor of Epidemiology within the College of Maryland College of Drugs (UMSOM). “This study considered two approaches: the use of testosterone gel and high intensity exercise. What we learned is that the addition of testosterone to exercise is not a useful method of improving physical function in this group of women.”
The examine, referred to as STEP-HI, concerned 129 girls 65 and older residing in the neighborhood who had a current surgical restore of a hip fracture and experiencing mobility impairment. It’s the largest such examine of testosterone administration to girls following a fracture of the hip and was carried out at UMSOM and 7 different medical websites all through the nation.
“Having a hip fracture is a sentinel event for patients and their families,” mentioned examine co-author and medical web site principal investigator Denise Orwig, Ph.D., Professor of Epidemiology and Gerontology at UMSOM who has spent greater than 25 years doing analysis to establish methods to maximise useful restoration after hip fracture. “While I’m disappointed that testosterone did not lead to the improvements we were expecting, the results are further evidence of how powerful exercise can be in helping hip fracture patients achieve restoration of function.”
Ellen Binder, MD, lead examine principal investigator and Professor of Drugs within the Division of Basic Drugs and Geriatrics on the Washington College College of Drugs, identified one shiny spot within the examine findings relating to the usage of testosterone gel: “It is notable that at the end of the intervention period, women assigned to exercise and testosterone had a significant reduction in the use of walking aids and greater improvement in a short-distance performance measure than women assigned to exercise and placebo. This finding will need further exploration to confirm whether testosterone therapy can facilitate recovery after a hip fracture in older women.”
Extra data:
Ellen F. Binder et al, Combining Train Coaching and Testosterone Remedy in Older Ladies After Hip Fracture, JAMA Community Open (2025). DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.10512
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College of Maryland College of Drugs
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Utilizing testosterone gel to deal with girls recovering from hip fractures offers no added advantages, medical trial finds (2025, Could 24)
retrieved 24 Could 2025
from https://medicalxpress.com/information/2025-05-testosterone-gel-women-recovering-hip.html
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