Testosterone Patch Lifts Libido In Women Who've Had Ovaries Removed

Posting Date: 09/06/2000

If you?re considering a hysterectomy, I strongly advise keeping your ovaries unless there?s a history of ovarian cancer in your family.

The reason for this is because the ovaries produce about half the body?s circulating testosterone in premenopausal women, a hormone necessary for a healthy sex drive.

If the ovaries are removed, the desire for sex decreases, although a new study in the New England Journal of Medicine says using a transdermal testosterone patch can significantly increase sexual responses in women who undergo full hysterectomies.

Researchers looked at 75 women who had a hysterectomy with the ovaries removed and found that those given a high-dose testosterone patch scored high on sexual assessment tests. Specifically, the percentage of women who had sexual fantasies, masturbated or engaged in sexual intercourse at least once a week increased two to three times from baseline.

In other words, the testosterone patch improved both desire, mood and psychological well-being, which is good news for women who have had their ovaries removed.

An interesting sidelight is that women in a placebo group who were given a fake patch also showed fairly significant improvement in their sexual desires and attitudes. Many of these were younger women who had a strong motivation for maintaining active sex lives, so their attitude could have a lot to do with the positive outcome.

Some really good news is that the testosterone patch didn?t have any negative side effects such as excess hair, acne or higher cholesterol levels.

This particular study shows that the transdermal testosterone patch can be an aphrodisiac for the approximately 300,000 women annually who have had their ovaries removed during a hysterectomy. The hormone therapy improves sexual function and psychological well-being.

Source: New England Journal of Medicine, Sept. 7, 2000

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