By John Fauber - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

MILWAUKEE - (KRT) - Low testosterone and other symptoms of so-called male menopause appear to increase a man's risk of developing heart disease, according to a provocative new study that is likely to fuel the debate over whether a large-scale clinical trial of the hormone is needed.

The finding, reported this week in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, comes at time when testosterone prescriptions and sales of related Internet anti-aging supplements are booming.

Previous studies have suggested that in older men, obese men and men with diabetes, low levels of testosterone were associated with heart disease, said senior author Olli Raitakari, a physician and researcher with Turku University Central Hospital in Finland.

"Our findings confirm in healthy, middle-aged men that normal testosterone levels are protective against atherosclerosis," Raitakari said. "It is possible that hormone replacement therapy may decrease the risk of cardiovascular diseases in men with low hormone levels."

However, Raitakari and others not connected with the study pointed out that while the study found a strong association between atherosclerosis and so-called andropause and low-testosterone, it was not proof.