Excessive testosterone in boys causes acne

Generally speaking, there are two hormones in the human body, androgen and estrogen, and these two hormones are usually balanced. If the hormone secretion in the body is abnormal, it will easily lead to clogged pores on the face, and then acne and blackheads will appear on the face, which has a great impact on personal image. However, there are many reasons for acne, so it is best to find out the cause and treat it accordingly.

What are the symptoms of high androgen levels?

In clinical practice, some patients with hyperandrogenism whose blood test results are normal may wonder: "My blood test results clearly do not indicate hyperandrogenism, why do you say I have hyperandrogenism, doctor?" In fact, in addition to using blood tests to determine whether a woman has hyperandrogenism, clinical symptoms are also a very important reference. Women with hyperandrogenism often behave like "tomboy". They have a typical feature - hirsutism. Not only do they have a lot of hair on their limbs, pubic area, and armpits, but they also have embarrassing hair on their upper lips, nipples, and abdomen. They are often accompanied by seborrheic, oily skin, acne and other skin manifestations. Some will also have "masculine" characteristics, such as a deep voice, prominent Adam's apple, enlarged clitoris, male-type pubic hair distribution, temporal baldness, and even breast atrophy.

What are the dangers of high levels of testosterone?

In addition to skin manifestations and giving women "masculine" characteristics, high androgen levels also have the following hazards:

1. Impact on menstruation and fertility: High androgen interferes with the growth and development of female follicles, leading to ovulation disorders and corpus luteum dysfunction, which in turn causes menstrual disorders, oligomenorrhea, and even amenorrhea and infertility in women. According to a large sample survey, half of patients with polycystic ovary have primary infertility, and another quarter have secondary infertility. Even after pregnancy, it will affect the corpus luteum function and lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as miscarriage or fetal malformation. In late pregnancy, studies have also shown that high androgen can also lead to preeclampsia, premature rupture of membranes, gestational diabetes, premature birth and other related adverse pregnancy outcomes.

2. Increased risk of cardiovascular disease: Triglycerides are the earliest blood lipid indicator to show abnormalities in hyperandrogenism. Elevated triglycerides and decreased high-density lipoprotein in the body can lead to the deposition of a large amount of adipose tissue in the blood vessel walls, damage to endothelial function, and ultimately lead to atherosclerosis and hypertension, increasing the risk of long-term cardiovascular disease.

3. Increased risk of diabetes: Obesity, especially abdominal obesity, is closely related to hyperandrogenism. Obese patients have fat accumulation in their bodies, fat cell hypertrophy, and decreased sensitivity to insulin, which can also lead to elevated blood insulin levels and increase the risk of diabetes. It has been reported that the incidence of impaired glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetes in patients with hyperandrogenism is 5-10 times higher than that of normal people.

4. Increased risk of endometrial cancer: Since high androgen interferes with women's ovulation, long-term anovulation can lead to continuous proliferation of the endometrium and increase the risk of developing endometrial cancer in the later stage. The obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, etc. caused by high androgen mentioned above are also risk factors for endometrial cancer.

5. Psychological problems: Due to some of the above changes, it will cause trouble to patients with hyperandrogenism to a certain extent and increase their psychological burden, making these patients more prone to negative emotions such as depression and suicide than normal people.

At present, the treatment of patients with hyperandrogenism adopts individualized treatment plans. While finding out the primary cause and treating the symptoms, we should also pay attention to strengthening physical exercise and cultivating good eating habits. For women who want to have children, they need to closely monitor their androgen levels and blood sugar under the guidance of doctors. Even if they do not want to have children, they still need to pay attention to their hyperandrogenism problems and try to reduce the occurrence of the above-mentioned long-term complications as much as possible under the guidance of professional doctors. In short, hyperandrogenism may be a problem throughout the patient's life, and we need to be vigilant and continue to pay attention to it.