Risk of Transference with cream

[Cooper]

There are various reports of transference issues when using cream or gel. Some say risk is very low while others say it is high. How long after applying cream is there still risk for transference or is there always a risk regardless of time past until you wash the area?

Also if you apply and cover area how likely is it that there will be transference issues?

I like the cream from Empower, have had good success with it with no transference issues to date.

 

[ZALEMAX]

Cooper, just received prescription from Empower so I can not tell you about transference issues good question for me as well since I have children I was wondering about that also. Can you tell me how long you have been using the cream? Also my cream reads 100mg/ml 4 clicks daily..How long have you been using? What are the benefits/ sides you getting? fixing to start soon..
Any advice you can give me on the cream is appreciated..

 

[StepbyStep]

I'm interested to see what others say, but the little bit that I've read on the subject seems to always refer to gels and not creams. I'm sure that there are similarities between the two, but I don't know enough to comment further on that.

From what I've read about the gels, a lot of testosterone remains on the surface of the skin after the alcohol has evaporated. The alcohol is what allows the transdermal testosterone to penetrate the skin, so once it is gone(~10min) very little of the remaining testosterone is absorbed. A lot of it winds up on clothing. Numbers vary study to study.

Keeping the application site covered by clothing will prevent the test from transferring to your partner. Washing the application site will also prevent this(prevent detectable elevations in blood levels), although it doesn't remove all of the test from the skin. The studies I read did not specify if soap was used. Washing clothing doesn't remove all the test from clothing either. As stated though this is with gels that use alcohol as a vehicle for the test to be absorbed, so very little of the residual testosterone if any is absorbed. Creams, I don't know.

We have separate laundry, towels and luffas. I wear a shirt at all times until I've showered. I thoroughly scrub the application sites and rinse well. Two years of this and my GF has had no symptoms of too much test in her system, but her blood levels have not been tested.

Still, I often wonder about what happens to all of the residual testosterone that doesn't get washed off my skin and laundry. It's probably all over the place in trace amounts, and concentrated on certain areas like the couch and bed. What affect does this have over years and years? I don't know how well the controlled studies represent the reality of the situation.

 

[Vince]

Advise patient of risk of transferring testosterone to females or children during the first 12 hours of application.

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[Vince]

How serious is the risk to transfer cream to wife during sex?

We have sex on average twice a day, very hard for me to tell in advance exactly when. I apply testosterone cream (Pentravan base) twice a day to the scrotum. My scrotum comes in contact with her vagina and her mouth. How long is it safe to wait before engaging in sex after cream application...

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[madman]

There are various reports of transference issues when using cream or gel. Some say risk is very low while others say it is high. How long after applying cream is there still risk for transference or is there always a risk regardless of time past until you wash the area?

Also if you apply and cover area how likely is it that there will be transference issues?

I like the cream from Empower, have had good success with it with no transference issues to date.

Should dry fairly quickly once spread/gently rubbed.

Even then after absorption, there will always be some left on the skin surface.

If you are concerned with transfer then your best bet would be to wash off the area/cover-up.

*The risk of transfer is substantially reduced by wearing clothes covering the application area. The majority of residual testosterone is removed from the skin surface by washing with soap and water prior to contact




*When transdermal testosterone gel or cream is applied to the upper body 9-14% is absorbed (2). The rest remains on the skin surface and there is the potential risk of passive transfer to partners and children. This is why the Consumer Medicine Information leaflets in all transdermal products advise covering the areas of application with clothing to minimize the risk.

*Scrotal application negates this risk and results in up to an 8-fold increase in testosterone bioavailability, using the scrotal compared to the abdominal skin routes. (3)





Potential for transfer (gel/cream)

Transdermal testosterone cream can be transferred to other persons by close skin-to-skin contact, resulting in increased testosterone serum levels and, with repeated contact, possible adverse effects. In women, this may cause the growth of facial and/or body hair, deepening of the voice, irregularities of the menstrual cycle; in children, this may cause premature puberty and genital enlargement, in case of repeat contact (inadvertent androgenization). If virilization occurs, testosterone therapy should be promptly discontinued until the cause has been identified.

The physician should inform the patient carefully about the risk of testosterone transfer and about safety instructions (see below). ANDROFORTE 5 should not be prescribed to patients with a major risk of non-compliance with safety instructions (e.g. severe alcoholism, drug abuse, and severe psychiatric disorders).

The risk of transfer is substantially reduced by wearing clothes covering the application area. The majority of residual testosterone is removed from the skin surface by washing with soap and water prior to contact.

As a result, the following precautions are recommended:

For the patient:

• Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after applying the cream.

• Cover the application area with clothing once the cream has dried.

• Wash before any situation in which skin-to-skin contact is foreseen.


For people not being treated with ANDROFORTE 5:

• In the event of contact with an application area that has not been washed or is not covered with clothing wash the area of skin onto which testosterone may have been transferred as soon as possible, using soap and water.

• Report the development of signs of excessive androgen exposure such as acne or hair modification.


*To improve partner safety the patient should be advised to wear a T-shirt covering the upper body application site during the contact period or to shower before sexual intercourse.

*To improve partner safety using scrotal application wash the genital area with a damp warm flannel before sexual intercourse.

*Furthermore, it is recommended to wear clothing covering the upper body application site during contact periods with children in order to avoid transference to children.

*Pregnant women must avoid any contact with ANDROFORTE 5 application sites. In the case of pregnancy of the partner, the patient must be particularly careful to avoid the potential transfer.

 

[HealthMan]

It is a real risk and you will probably never know for sure if you are “contaminating” someone. This was the main reason I switched to injections. Not worth worrying about this in my opinion.

 

[madman]

Take-home points

*When transdermal testosterone gel or cream is applied to the upper body 9-14% is absorbed (2). The rest remains on the skin surface and there is the potential risk of passive transfer to partners and children

*The risk of transfer is substantially reduced by wearing clothes covering the application area. The majority of residual testosterone is removed from the skin surface by washing with soap and water prior to contact

 

[Vman]

My doctor started all his patients on cream (applied to scrotum) and only 10% or so switched over to injections. He said that for the first 2 hours there is higher risk of transfer and he said if I was wearing clothes over the area to not worry about it.

That said, I was extremely vigilant in trying to make sure I did not transfer any to my wife. She had her testosterone level checked one time while I was on cream and her levels were 20% over the top of range for women. Side note, her libido was awesome during this time.

I told my doctor and he said that the wife of one of his patients had testosterone that was twice the top of range for women. The patient was vigilant and my doctor attributed it to applying the cream right before bed. The patient stopped doing that and his wife's testosterone dropped to just slightly over top of range. My doctor guessed that it was the vapors from the cream under the blankets causing the transfer.

At the end of the day I think transfer to kids shouldn't be a concern if you are applying to your scrotum. I would be a little concerned if I had young kids and if I was applying to upper body.

If you share a bed with someone I think there's a pretty high chance some transference will occur.

 

[Cooper]

Vman are you still using the cream?

 

[Vince]

Just my two cents. Before I started trt, I was offered to start with cream or gel. I refuse, because I was afraid of contaminating my lover or my grandkids. I'm happy with injections, they work for me. But as I know, what size doesn't fit all.

 

[Jason Sypolt]

I can give you real-world usage and experience. I have been using the cream and now hydrogel for many years, and I can say there have been no problems or concerns. I have a wife, and my 3 kids were pretty young when I started on it. Never an issue. The cream dries quickly but there will be some on the skin. It’s a small amount, with only a small % of absorption best case with direct application.

You have to pretty much be so careless that you try to get it on someone else intentionally and repeatedly and a reasonable amount of it. Even if it were to happen, one brief touch of dried testosterone which at that point has marginally best case single digit % absorption from skin to skin context is not growing a beard or harming anyone. It’s a blip in someone else’s testosterone level, if that.

All of the posts about creams inevitably have “reports of” and “I heard”s of children pushed into early puberty and women growing beards and Adam’s apples. Where are all of those cases and reports? Im not talking 1, I’m talking widespread like the comments make it out to be. This would not be such a readily available product with no warnings on the boxes and labeling if it were a common problem. Because it isn’t.

 

[Cooper]

Thanks for your input Jason. What you stated is basically my thoughts as well.

 

[Vman]

Vman are you still using the cream?

I switched to injections after about 9 months on cream. I felt great on cream and the only side I had was I got acne on my back and in the middle of my chest that I never had before.

I switched because I have really sensitive skin and kept getting rashes and itchy bumps in my scrotal area that my doctor was not able to resolve with any other treatments.

I do not feel as well on injections as I did on cream and I have some issues with sleep on injections. That said, I'm in the best shape of my life. My libido is good. Overall I'm pleased with injections. I just wish I could go back to the cream.

As for transference, I would not have known that there was any while I was on cream if my wife hadn't had a routine test at her endo. So I agree with Jason's overall comment on transference that if it were a major problem you would see issues with kids and women with beards. That said, I bet there's a good chance his wife's T is above normal range for women if she got it tested.

 

[Jason Sypolt]

I bet there's a good chance his wife's T is above normal range for women if she got it tested.

Actually her T is a little bit low. And I even do both of our laundry together sometimes. In my mind and from my experience it’s just such non-event in normal day to day use. Someone would need frequent and prolonged exposure or have it applied to them intentionally (and very likely more than one accident) for it to start to become a problem.

 

[Vman]

Actually her T is a little bit low.

Maybe it was just me then. I was so hyper vigilant. I was very surprised to see my wife's T was elevated.

One more interesting tidbit was that her endo was not concerned at all with my wife's T being 20% above top of range for women. She said that she was fine with those levels and just wanted to monitor it to make sure it didn't go too high and that she didn't have any other unwanted side effects.

 

[Cooper]

It seems as if you use cream, apply to scrotum or really any area that is well covered immediately after application, and then don't have any skin to skin contact for at least 4 hours but preferably not at all until after washing area you should be fine.