By Gary Donovitz, MD and Terri Suresh, RN, MSN, ACNPbr
BioTE® Medical Founder Dr. Gary Donovitz and National Spokesperson TerribrSuresh recently challenged reports that are critical of testosteronebrreplacement therapy. Media coverage reported that testosteronebrreplacement therapy was over-prescribed by physicians, often unnecessarybrand in some cases dangerous for consumers.br
Dr. Donovitz and Terri Suresh are leading providers of natural hormonebrreplacement therapy using subcutaneous pellets. Critical of what he called abrgeneral lack of depth in research, Donovitz says, “We see significant flaws inbrthe information that's being presented to the public. Studies based solely onbrpharmaceutical products are being applied to all testosterone therapy. As abrresult, credible research which is essential to a full understanding ofbrtestosterone therapy has not been considered.”br
The Wall Street Journal on November 6, 2013 published an article that wasbrcritical of testosterone replacement therapy. The publication cited a researchbrstudy of veterans, which claimed that testosterone therapy raised the risk ofbrheart attack and stroke by about 30%. Because the focus of the study wasbrlimited to pharmaceutical products, the research and its conclusions arebrflawed and incomplete.
Dr. Donovitz states, “The study referenced in The WallbrStreet Journal article is limited to the gels, patches and shots which are beingbrheavily promoted on television and radio. These pharmaceutical products usebrsynthetic hormones and we’ve known about the dangers of synthetics forbryears. However, to be accurate and complete, any study of testosteronebrtherapy needs to also include data for natural hormone replacement. “br
In addition to calling The Wall Street Journal research incomplete, Dr.brDonovitz said that the study had other issues that impacted its integrity.brMany of the 23,173 veterans that were excluded from the study would havebrbenefitted from proper testosterone optimization using natural hormonebrreplacement. There is also concern that the sample, which consisted of elderly men, was skewed because of a high incidence of conditions such asbrhypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol levels. Another anomaly of thebrstudy, was the fact that of the 1223 patients prescribed testosterone gels,brpatches and creams, only 20% filled one prescription.
Donovitz added, “Thebrlevel of patient monitoring and care after the procedure was not sufficient.brOnly 60% of the patients administered testosterone had follow up laboratorybrassessments of their serum testosterone. You cannot expect results withoutbroptimization and that requires laboratory assessment.”
There are years of research and studies that support natural hormonebrreplacement therapy (HRT). Natural testosterone and estrogen replacementbrtherapy via pellet implants, around since the 1930's and the most widelybrstudied form of natural HRT, has shown no increased risk of blood clots, heartbrattacks or strokes. In fact, multiple studies show that bio-identical hormonebrreplacement therapy is protective to the prostate, the heart, bones, joints andbrthe brain. The benefits to the patients, both men and women, allows forbrhealthier lives as people age and they require less drugs for diseasebrmanagement.br
It is vital that providers and advocates of natural therapies such as bio-bridentical hormones commit to educating the public on how to read throughbrflawed media reports. A challenge facing leaders in the wellness industry isbrthe constant battle with big Pharma, the FDA, lawyers seeing opportunity, allbrfor financial gain and not considering the facts or the best interest of thebrpatients. Dr. Donovitz said that he's reaching out to The Wall Street Journaland other media outlets to urge journalists to understand the truth relative tobrhormone therapy.
He added, “We understand and appreciate the role thatbrThe Wall Street Journal and the media community play in the area ofbrconsumer advocacy. We are supplying them with information that will deepenbrand complete their understanding of hormone replacement therapy. Thisbrinformation will give them the ability to present thorough, objective andbraccurate information to their readers and viewers.”
Terri Suresh is a Board Certified, Adult Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and a Principal at Hormonal Health & Wellness Center of Southlake. Terri's passion is educating people about the aging process and the belief at Hormonal Health & Wellness is that people can experience relief from the symptoms and stressors of aging through hormonal balance, internal and external nutrient supplementation, and therapeutic massage. See more at Hormonal Health and Wellness Center.