Oct 24 (Fax Watch) - A daily testosterone boost may help reduce angina-chest pain that occurs when the heart does not receive adequate blood flow-in men who have low levels of the hormone, a new study revealed.

The study consisted of 46 men with an average age of 62 years who had angina and low levels of testosterone in their blood. Half of the men wore a testosterone-delivering patch on their thigh and half wore a placebo (dummy) patch.

At the end of 14 weeks, the men wearing testosterone patches increased the amount of time they could spend on a treadmill by 37 percent, while the placebo group only experienced a 15 percent increase. The testosterone group also noticed an increase in the quality of life including emotional and mental health.

Researchers suggested that testosterone may cause blood vessels to dilate, increasing blood flow to the heart. The findings were published in the October 17 issue of Circulation.

"In this study, we have demonstrated that daily administration of small doses of supplemental testosterone to men with chronic stable angina prolongs the time to myocardial ischemia compared with the effect of placebo," the authors concluded.

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