We wanted to send out some more information on the recent controversy regarding testosterone replacement in men that we think is very important for our patients to understand. Below are some excerpts from a recent article written by the Age Management Medical Group (AMMG). We think you will find it very interesting.
Reaction has continued to grow regarding the November 2013 JAMA article, “Association of Testosterone Therapy With Mortality, Myocardial Infarction, and Stroke in Men With Low Testosterone Levels.”
Twenty-Five Medical Societies Join Androgen Study Group to Petition JAMA to Retract Misleading Testosterone Study
Unprecedented action taken to combat “false information” that has “harmed public health, distorted medical science, and violated the trust between medical journals and the consumer.” Failure to retract amounts to “medical literature malpractice.”
In an unprecedented action, twenty-five international medical societies have petitioned the Journal of the American Medical Association to retract the article that precipitated recent concerns regarding cardiovascular risks with testosterone therapy, citing “gross data mismanagement” rendering the study “no longer credible.”
This is the first time in history a worldwide community of distinguished researchers, scholars, and clinicians has united to demand removal of a study from the literature.
This article has already undergone two published corrections, and new revelations raise additional concerns.
The percentage of men who suffered an adverse event (heart attack, stroke, or death) based on reported numbers was 10.1% (123 events in 1223 men) in the testosterone group and 21.2% (1587 events in 7486 men) in the untreated group. Those percentages do not appear in the text of the study.
“This article has caused enormous damage,” stated Mohit Khera, MD, Associate Professor of Urology at Baylor Medical College. “This article created an unfounded negative perception of testosterone therapy. Physicians discontinued treatment for men who were benefitting from treatment. It harmed physician-patient relations, as patients ask why their physicians placed their health at risk. And a new field of medical malpractice has sprung up overnight, with plaintiff attorneys in the US advertising nationwide for patients who suffered a stroke or heart attack after receiving testosterone. And it’s all based on pure nonsense.”
“JAMA has violated the public trust,” concluded Dr. Morgentaler. “Its peer-review process failed. It recklessly promulgated false information that created the perception of medical risks. It withheld news that the study had been corrected, for two months, until interest had waned. It undermined the academic process by allowing the authors to avoid answering questions posed in letters. The lead author didn’t even sign the response to letters. It now stands by a highly statistical study after which it has been revealed that the statistics cannot be trusted. JAMA has left itself vulnerable to criticism that it promotes sensationalism to boost revenues, or is biased against the use of testosterone therapy in men. JAMA’s continued support of this discredited study, defying the worldwide community of experts, represents medical literature malpractice.”
To read the whole article, click here: http://www.agemed.org/AMMGejournal/April2014/MorrisUpdateJAMATestosteroneApril2014/tabid/1103/language/en-US/Default.aspx
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