Testosterone can improve libido in women, still does not solve larger problem with HSDD

Details: Category: Cake Recipes; Published on Wednesday, 19 September 2012 20:57; Written by Lara Landis; Hits: 653

Testosterone can improve a woman’s sex drive, according to a headline in the Vancouver Sun. No one suggested testosterone could not improve a woman’s sex drive. Yesterday’s story misses the point of the debate over HSDD entirely.

HSDD, which will become two disorders in the DSM-5, is controversial because people question the legitimacy of the disorder. The Sun’s story seems to be a case of classic misdirection, suggesting that it is safe to use drugs such as Libigel for their intended purpose.

Medical and mental health professionals are trained to see a lack of interest in sex and a lack of sexual attraction as the same thing. Few doctors distinguish between an aging woman experiencing a declining libido and someone who is Asexual.

A report in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Canada showed that a test group did not experience a statistically significant increase in the rates of breast cancer or cardiovascular incidents. These statistics mirror the data Biosante acquired during its Phase III Libigel trials.

No one agrees on what constitutes a low or normal sex drive in women or men. Doctors in the United States often prescribe testosterone gels to older women complaining of lower sex drives.

The doctors make sure that their patients are suffering distress over their lack of sexual activity. The distress criterion is found in many other of the disorders listed in the DSM. While this criterion remains, many of the disorders in the DSM-5 require a patient to exhibit fewer symptoms than the same disorders in the DSM-IV.

Doctors do not normally prescribe this treatment for long-term use.

Source:

Testosterone can improve libido in post-menopausal women