Primary vs. Secondary Hypogonadism
There are two main categories of low T:
- Primary hypogonadism - The testes themselves are not functioning properly. This causes low production of testosterone directly at the source.
- Secondary hypogonadism - The testes are still intact, but the pituitary gland and hypothalamus fail to adequately trigger testosterone production in the testes due to dysfunctional signaling.
Testing helps determine if the root cause is primary or secondary hypogonadism for informing treatment approaches.