endocrine

5α-Dihydrotestosterone

DHT

Also known as dihydrotestosterone

Specification

Method: LC-MS/MS — steroid panel Liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry
Validated matrices: Venous serum Standard draw
Tasso capillary serum ~600 µL
Tube: RED
CPT: 82642
Reportable range: 10.125 – 900 ng/dL

What this test answers, and what it does not

Reportable from 10.125 ng/dL, which covers most of the female reference interval and the elevated concentrations that characterize androgen excess — hirsutism, polycystic ovary syndrome, androgenetic alopecia and suspected 5α-reductase overactivity. Concentrations below the reportable limit are reported as less than the limit. The constraint applies to questions requiring quantitation below the female reference interval: monitoring DHT suppression during 5α-reductase inhibitor therapy, where treated values fall well below the limit, and computing a numeric DHT:T ratio at suppressed concentrations. Agreement between capillary and venous DHT was not established across the full measuring interval in the 2018 correlation study — see the vein-to-capillary study for the scope of that finding.

Published reference ranges

Published values for 5α-Dihydrotestosterone vary along 2 axes:

Because a single unstratified figure would misrepresent them, none is shown here.

Published values vary by sex, age, time of collection, menstrual cycle phase and analytical method. The interval applicable to a patient's result appears on that patient's report.

Ordered within

Sex steroid profile

Specification

Published reference ranges

Ordered within

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