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Endocrinology and Metabolism |
1 Hormonology Laboratory, A. Béclère Hospital, 92141 Clamart, France.
2 Hormonology Laboratory, Lyon Sud Hospital, 69495 Lyon, France.
3 Biochemistry and Hormonology Laboratory, Tenon Hospital, 75020 Paris, France.
4 Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Laboratory, Angers Hospital, 49003 Angers, France.
5 Biochemistry Laboratory, Versailles Hospital, 78150 Le Chesnay, France.
6 CERBA Laboratory, 95066 Cergy Pontoise, France.
7 Nuclear Medicine Laboratory, Timone Hospital, 13385 Marseille, France.
8 Unit of Hormonal Biochemistry, St Louis Hospital, 75010 Paris, France.
aAddress correspondence to this author at: Unit of Hormonal Biochemistry, St Louis Hospital, Assistance-Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, 1 avenue Claude Vellefaux 75010 Paris, France. Fax 33-1-42-49-42-80; e-mail philippe.boudou{at}sls.ap-hop-paris.fr.
Background: Commercially available testosterone immunoassays give divergent results, especially at the low concentrations seen in women. We compared immunoassays and a nonimmunochemical method that could quantify low testosterone concentrations.
Methods: We measured serum testosterone in 50 men, 55 women, and 11 children with use of eight nonisotopic immunoassays, two isotopic immunoassays, and isotope-dilution gas chromatographymass spectrometry (ID/GC-MS).
Results: Compared with ID/GC-MS, 7 of the 10 immunoassays tested overestimated testosterone concentrations in samples from women; mean immunoassay results were 46% above those obtained by ID/GC-MS. The immunoassays underestimated testosterone concentrations in samples from men, giving mean results 12% below those obtained by ID/GC-MS. In women, at concentrations of 0.67.2 nmol/L, 3 of the 10 immunoassays gave positive mean differences >2.0 nmol/L (range, -0.7 to 3.3 nmol/L) compared with ID/GC-MS; in men at concentrations of 8.258 nmol/L, 3 of the 10 immunoassays tested gave mean differences >4.0 nmol/L (range, -4.8 to 2.6 nmol/L).
Conclusion: None of the immunoassays tested was sufficiently reliable for the investigation of sera from children and women, in whom very low (0.17 nmol/L) and low (<1.7 nmol/L) testosterone concentrations are expected.
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