URINARY-EXCRETION OF TESTOSTERONE AND ESTRADIOL IN CHINESE MEN AND RELATIONSHIPS WITH SERUM-LIPOPROTEIN CONCENTRATIONS

Urinary excretion of total and free testosterone and estradiol was mea sured in 46 healthy Chinese men, along with serum concentrations of to tal testosterone and estradiol and the calculated free (unbound) conce ntrations. Associations with serum concentrations of total, low-densit y lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein-2 (HDL(2)), and HDL(3) c holesterol, apolipoproteins (apos) A-I and B, and lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a )] were studied. Serum total and free testosterone concentrations were positively correlated with HDL and HDL(2) cholesterol and apo A-L. Se rum total and free estradiol levels showed borderline-significant nega tive associations with total and LDL cholesterol levels. Among urinary variables, total estradiol excretion was negatively associated with a po B levels and showed borderline-significant associations with total and LDL cholesterol. Adjustment for potential confounders, including a ge, body mass index (BMI), and waist to hip ratio (WHR), strengthened the associations between urinary total estradiol and serum total chole sterol, LDL cholesterol, and apo B. Urinary free estradiol showed a si gnificant correlation with HDL(3) cholesterol. Urinary excretion of to tal testosterone was significantly negatively associated with serum ch olesterol and LDL cholesterol levels only after controlling for confou nding variables. There were no significant associations between hormon e variables and Lp(a) values. This study suggests that variation in se x hormone production accounts for some of the variation in serum lipid levels. Copyright (C) 1996 by W.B. Saunders Company