ST. LOUIS — Researchers have found that male patients hospitalized with COVID-19 had more severe cases of the virus if they also had lower testosterone, according to a study released on Tuesday.
The research, released by the American Medical Association, showed that out of a group of 90 male COVID-19 patients seen at Barnes-Jewish Hospital last spring, lower testosterone was associated with increased severity of illness.
The study did not prove that lower testosterone levels caused more severe cases. And crucially, older men, and men with diabetes or obesity — all factors associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes — are also more likely to have lower testosterone. But still, the researchers say the findings shed light on one of the earliest questions that arose when the new coronavirus began spreading across the world.
