Sex Hormones Linked to Cardiovascular Events in Men With Type 2 Diabetes

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 4, 2026 (HealthDay News) — In men with type 2 diabetes (T2D), sex hormones are associated with cardiovascular (CV) events, according to a study published online Jan. 26 in Diabetes Care.

Teresa Gisinger, M.D., Ph.D., from the Medical University of Vienna, and colleagues examined the association of sex hormones at baseline and one year after a lifestyle intervention on CV risk in a prospective study involving 2,260 adults with T2D.

The researchers found that higher baseline total testosterone was associated with lower CV risk in men (hazard ratio, 0.74). Sex hormone-binding globulin increases were inversely associated with CV risk in men with ≥7 percent weight loss (hazard ratio, 0.47). Increases in estradiol were associated with CV risk in men with <7 percent weight loss (hazard ratios, 1.64 and 1.88, respectively, for second and third versus first estradiol tertile). In women, no associations were seen.

“Results from this study contribute to our understanding of how tracking sex hormones in people with diabetes could complement what we already know about traditional heart disease risk factors [like smoking and cholesterol levels],” lead author Wendy Bennett, M.D., M.P.H., from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, said in a statement. “The results could help clinicians personalize heart disease prevention strategies in the future.”

Two authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

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