SALIVARY TESTOSTERONE CONCENTRATIONS IN PREPUBERTAL AND PUBERTAL MALES - COMPARISON WITH TOTAL AND FREE PLASMA TESTOSTERONE

Salivary testosterone (T) levels in male children and adolescents were measured and compared with plasma T. Salivary concentrations correlated well with plasma total T (r = 0.72) and even better with free plasma T (r = 0.89) in subjects with plasma T levels of pubertal or adult levels (> 1.0 nmol/1). In subjects with prepubertal or low plasma T (< 1.0 nmol/1), there was neither a correlation with plasma total, nor with free T. In hCG tests (responder and nonresponder), salivary T reflected plasma levels faithfully. The results suggest that salivary T, which is suitable for repeated sampling, is a good marker of T secretion in pubertal males.