Abstract

Objective: We aimed to evaluate the relationship between serum total testosterone and total prostate specific antigen (TPSA) levels in healthy men from two different regions of Turkey.

Material and methods: The study included two separate groups of healthy men from two geographically distinct regions in Turkey. Group 1 included 119 patients with a mean age of 52.73±7.53 years who visited Osmaniye State Hospital for routine check-up between January 2006 and January 2007. Group 2 consisted of 196 patients with a mean age of 50.32±7.84 years who were sent to outpatient clinics in İzmir Atatürk Teaching Hospital between July 2008 and July 2009. The relationships among testosterone and TPSA levels and patients’ age were evaluated.

Results: The mean TPSA levels for Group 1 and Group 2 were 1.11±0.78 ng/mL and 1.75±1.06 ng/mL, respectively (p=0.5). The mean testosterone levels in Group 1 (386.4±154.6 ng/dL) and Group 2 (383.9±170.6 ng/dL) showed no significant difference (p=0.89). There was a positive correlation between the age of the patients and testosterone level (r=0.22, p=0.015) in Group 1; however, in Group 2, there was a significant negative correlation between age and serum testosterone levels (r=-0.16, p=0.022). Serum testosterone level showed no significant correlation with TPSA level in either group (Group 1: r=0.03, p=0.72; Group 2: r=-0.04, p=0.67).

Conclusion: Testosterone or TPSA levels did not change between geographical regions of Turkey. However, the effect of age on testosterone levels varies according to geographical regions. Further studies with more patients are needed to confirm these preliminary results and to investigate the impact of geographical regions on the oncologic features of prostate cancer and other urologic diseases.