Testosterone and Male Sexual Function

The Study

A 2022 clinical review from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine published in Urologic Clinics of North America — the premier journal of the American urological community. The authors examine testosterone's role across the entire male sexual response cycle, from desire through arousal, erection, ejaculation, and orgasm.

Key Findings

Testosterone drives the full sexual response cycle The review establishes testosterone as the primary hormone coordinating male sexual development and function — operating across the central nervous system, peripheral nervous system, and end organs simultaneously. Its role is not limited to libido; it is active at every stage of the sexual response cycle.

Low libido is more common than recognized Between 5% and 17% of men report problems with libido and sexual desire. In the context of symptomatic hypogonadism, low libido is rarely an isolated symptom — it typically presents alongside a broader cluster of hormonal and metabolic signs.

TRT can be safely prescribed for adult-onset hypogonadism (ED) — a finding affirmed in this 2022 review from Johns Hopkins examining testosterone's role across the full male sexual response cycle, including libido, arousal, erection, and ejaculation.

Galansky, Levy, Burnett | Urologic Clinics of North America | Vol. 49, Issue 4 | November 2022 | Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Read the full journal: https://pure.johnshopkins.edu/en/publications/testosterone-and-male-sexual-function/