SALIVARY TESTOSTERONE IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS

Objective. To study changes in testosterone concentrations in saliva a nd total testosterone, free testosterone, and sex hormone binding glob ulin (SHBG) concentrations in serum in 2 groups of postmenopausal wome n with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), one group with glucocorticoid treatm ent and the other without it. Methods. The above mentioned hormonal le vels were measured in 20 postmenopausal women with RA undergoing gluco corticoid treatment, in 24 postmenopausal women with RA without treatm ent, and in 36 postmenopausal women without RA. Results. We observed s ignificantly lower levels of total testosterone in serum, SHBG in seru m, testosterone in saliva, and the free testosterone index in the grou p of patients with RA undergoing glucocorticoid treatment compared to the group without treatment. We did not observe changes in free testos terone concentrations in serum of the groups studied, which is believe d due to its lower specificity. Conclusion. Testosterone in saliva is a useful indicator for monitoring androgenic status in women with RA.