Effectiveness of oral spironolactone?

[Bryan]

Believe what you want. I'm just reporting what happened, and what happens constantly with thousands of transsexuals every day. My regimen is very typical, as are these results.

Must be the estrogen, or perhaps some really unusual synergism between the estrogen and the spironolactone. That's all I can figure.

Bryan

 

[Siberian]

Must be the estrogen, or perhaps some really unusual synergism between the estrogen and the spironolactone. That's all I can figure.

Possibly. I've read doctor's reports where they've found that estrogen alone does reduce serum T, but only so far... rarely below 100 or so. But it takes massive doses to get even that far, which increases the risk of blood clots.

By adding spironolactone to the mix, the T is knocked down very far (as you see), allowing less estrogen to be used.

spironolactone alone has been shown to reduce or prevent hair loss in women, so it's doing something on it's own too.

In the end though, I can't explain it, I can only tell you what's happened to me

 

[Siberian]

Sorry to steal light from your post, but I was wondering what you have noticed is different with your skin?

Im just wondering what affect lowering test. has on your skin...

Less oil. Or more like NO oil. My face always had a shine I had to fight with powders and such... now I have to slather on moisturizers all day instead.

Over time (year+), spironolactone will also reduce body hair to more female-like norms. Doesn't affect the beard though, darn it.

The E makes the skin softer, and slightly thinner, giving it an almost transluscent quality. But the main difference is more fat just under the skin, so not only is the texture different, but the feel as well. It's... "padded" for lack of a better word.

 

[hellohello]

Ah thanks for letting me know. Maybe that's why women's skin always seems to look smoother and more baby like than mens.

 

[Bryan]

Must be the estrogen, or perhaps some really unusual synergism between the estrogen and the spironolactone. That's all I can figure.

Possibly. I've read doctor's reports where they've found that estrogen alone does reduce serum T, but only so far... rarely below 100 or so. But it takes massive doses to get even that far, which increases the risk of blood clots.

By adding spironolactone to the mix, the T is knocked down very far (as you see), allowing less estrogen to be used.

BTW, are you familiar with that small Greek trial that tested oral spironolactone for male pattern baldness a few years ago? It's been widely discussed on all the hairloss sites. It was presented as a letter to the editor in this journal: Clinical Endocrinology (1997) 47, 759-761. They gave exactly the same dose of spironolactone that you're getting (200 mg/day) to four people (two men, and two women) for 6 months. Here's a passage from their report:

Measurement of androgens and sex hormone binding globulin, were performed in all patients and ovarian ultrasound assessment was performed in the female patients. Furthermore, measurements of hair loss after daily washing for 10 days and hair phase evaluation with trichograms were carried out before, after 6 months on spironolactone and 3-4 months after its withdrawal. Unit area trichogram provides a proportional assessment of the 4 phases of scalp hair (anagen, catagen, telogen and dysmorphic).

No marked changes in the endocrine parameters were observed as a result of treatment, with serum testosterone being slightly elevated in one of the female patients both of whom had polycystic ovary syndrome.

So as you see, there certainly wasn't a 97% reduction in serum testosterone just from oral spironolactone alone! In fact, there was actually a slight elevation of testosterone in one of the women. As I pointed out before, spironolactone could possibly have a biphasic effect on testosterone production: it might lower it at one dose, and raise it at another.

In any event, I'd like to know the real reason why your T levels dropped so low. It's certainly not due to the spironolactone alone. It must be due to some weird interaction between the spironolactone and the estrogen. I guess we need the services of an endocrinologist to explain this for us. Can you ask your own doctor about it, and report here what he says?

Bryan

 

[Siberian]

So as you see, there certainly wasn't a 97% reduction in serum testosterone just from oral spironolactone alone! In fact, there was actually a slight elevation of testosterone in one of the women. As I pointed out before, spironolactone could possibly have a biphasic effect on testosterone production: it might lower it at one dose, and raise it at another.
Bryan

Interesting!

Well, some reports say spironolactone reduces T production from the testes and adrenal glands. Maybe since women don't have testes, there's nothing much to affect? And if it's a competitor at androgen receptor sites, that might explain the slight rise in blood levels.

I dunno... guessing here

Sure though, I'll ask my Doctor

 

[harold]

I'd guess that spironolactone is causing a slight elevation in T as the DHT receptors in the HTPA are blocked and also reducing T through the other means that you mention and that Socks goes into in his posts. But add in significant levels of Estrogen and T levels will tumble as the HTPA is much more sensitive to variations in E than in DHT.
Thats my guess.
hh