Testosterone and Sex Drive in Women

Women who spray testosterone on their stomach to raise their sex drive may not see much benefit — unless they also want to grow hair on their belly.

Writing in Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers said it was possible that the treatment held promise for premenopausal women experiencing a loss of sexual interest and satisfaction. But the study found only limited improvements, and the researchers said even these might have been caused by a placebo effect. Treatments containing testosterone are given for women whose sex drive diminishes after menopause; none are approved for those still menstruating, the study said.

For this study, 261 women who reported a decrease in sexual activity and had low testosterone levels were given one of four sprays and told to put it on their stomach for four months. Three sprays held varying levels of testosterone, and one was a placebo.

At the start the study, the women reported having four to five sexual encounters a month, with an average of 1.4 described as satisfactory. After 16 weeks, the women in all the groups reported a somewhat better sex life, although the increase was statistically meaningful only for the group that received the middle dose of testosterone. Unwanted hair growth where the spray was placed was fairly common.

The results, the researchers said, justify more research, but they cautioned against the widespread use of testosterone in premenopausal women for now. [via]