Methyltestosterone
Pronunciation:meth-ill-tess-TOSS-ter-ohn
Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number:58-18-4
Formal Names:Android, Estratest, Methitest, Testred, Virilon
Type:Anabolic steroid.Seepage 24
Federal Schedule Listing:Schedule III (DEA no. 4000)
USA Availability:Prescription
Pregnancy Category:X
Uses.Methyltestosterone is a synthetic drug manufactured fromtestoster-
one. Methyltestosterone’s medical uses include supplementation of testoster-
one in males with low levels of that hormone and treatment of female breast
cancer. Scientists report unsatisfactory results from a test of whether the com-
pound might work as a male contraceptive and mixed results when the sub-
stance was used to treat male impotence. Impotence improvement was better
when methyltestosterone was taken in combination with ayohimbeprepa-
ration. Methyltestosterone has provided pain relief and occasionally fertility
enhancement to women suffering from a reproductive disorder called endo-
metriosis externa. Therapeutic regimens to build up bone strength in older
women may include methyltestosterone, as may therapies designed to com-
pensate for hormonal changes caused by menopause. In research projects
height increase occurred when the drug was administered to boys of short
stature. Experimenters describe the drug as effective treatment for hereditary
angioedema, an affliction involving tissue swelling. The drug also has agri-
cultural uses such as illegally promoting pig and cattle growth.
Drawbacks. Volunteers who took methyltestosterone in an experiment
showed slight changes in thinking ability, and 2 of the 20 subjects had man-
iclike episodes that might be attributable to the drug. A report noted that
someone receiving the drug experienced visual and auditory hallucinations,
and a case report indicated that methyltestosterone andmethandrostenolone
were likely causes of psychotic incidents experienced by two bodybuilders. A
human experiment attempted to document the drug’s psychological effects
but was unable to correlate behavioral changes with volunteers’ usage of the
substance. The substance is suspected of causing liver damage, sometimes
resulting in jaundice, lesions, tumors, or other conditions. The compound may
cause fluid retention, which can be risky for persons with kidney, liver, or