Literature Review: Testosterone and Wound Healing
RIP lab mice
Why yes, the testosterone that @testosteronejew was taking probably contributed to the nightmarish complications.
Sex hormones and mucosal wound healing *2009) There is a complex relationship and yes, the exogenous, cosmetic testosterone use @testosteronejew was doing at the time may have played a direct role in the failure of this wound to close. Is Dr. Scythe Gallagher even aware of this relationship?
They cut people’s mouth and measured their hormone levels with blood samples then videographed healing.
:No strong associations were observed between healing times and estradiol or progesterone levels. However, in younger subjects, lower testosterone levels related to faster wound closure. Conversely, in older women higher testosterone levels related to (1) lower inflammatory responses; and (2) faster healing times. No such relationships were seen in older men, or in women taking oral contraceptives or hormone replacement therapy [HRT]. Older women (50-54 years) not yet experiencing menopause healed similarly to younger women and dissimilarly from age-matched post-menopausal women. This suggests that the deleterious effects of aging on wound healing occur secondary to the effects of menopause. Supporting this, there was evidence in post-menopausal women that HRT augmented wound closure. Overall, this study suggests that human mucosal healing rates are modulated by testosterone levels. Based upon when between-group differences were observed, testosterone may impact upon the proliferative phase of healing which involves immune processes such as re-epithelialization and angiogenesis.”
They cut and then stressed out a bunch of mice then euthanized them to study the wounds. Among other conclusions, they determined “androgens contribute to the stress-induced impairment of the healing of cutaneous wounds”
Androgen receptor-mediated inhibition of cutaneous wound healing (2002)
“We suggest that endogenous testosterone inhibits the cutaneous wound healing response in males and is associated with an enhanced inflammatory response. The mechanisms underlying the observed effects involve a direct upregulation of proinflammatory cytokine expression by macrophages in response to testosterone. Blockade of androgen action systemically, via receptor antagonism, accelerates healing significantly, suggesting a specific target for future therapeutic intervention in impaired wound healing states in elderly males.”
5alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) retards wound closure by inhibiting re-epithelialization (2009)
previously demonstrated that blocking the conversion of testosterone to 5alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) limits its ability to impair healing, suggesting that DHT is a more potent inhibitor of repair than is testosterone. The present study aimed to delineate the central mechanisms by which androgens delay repair
“Indeed, androgen/androgen receptor (AR) signaling has been shown to inhibit cutaneous wound healing.” It looks from the paper that they only looked at male mice.
The healing of vaginal wounds in rats treated with testosterone propionate (1954)
The effect of androgens on tissue regeneration - PubMed (nih.gov)
Thank you to the person who sent me this! TL;DR. They wounded some rabbits and then put either local testosterone secreting pellets or injected the rats with testosterone. Among other findings, the authors stated that the testosterone induced pseudopregnancy in the female rabbits, an experience reported by some detransitioner women. The authors found that testosterone increased growth rate, and used dummy implants to eliminate placebo effect as a cause of the increased growth. As I’ve discussed before, drugs that accelerate cell division generally promote cancer via various mechanisms.
I cannot find the actual abstracts to these two bc they’re hella old and foundational so if anyone has it please send it over. It’s not on sci-hub.
We are just hateful bigots for thinking wounds should heal
Thanks for doing these awesome lit reviews to provide context.