Research on the Clinical Practice of Male Menopausal Disorder Using Health Insurance Claims Data

Abstract

This study evaluated Japan’s clinical approach to male menopausal disorders, assessing the number of patients, treatments, coexisting conditions, and new consultation morbidity using data from health insurance claims. We obtained 12 years of data (2010–2021) from insured person ledgers and health insurance claims of 14 health insurance associations. There were 595,796 enrollees in 2020, and 4,416,194 observation person-years in total. We extracted and compiled data on patients who had been diagnosed and treated for male menopausal disorders, including the treatment types and coexisting conditions. We calculated the annual male enrollees aged 20 to 70 in 2020, and determined the number of patients, treated cases, and new patient morbidity among male menopausal disorder patients. The highest prevalence was observed in the 55–59 age group: 133 patients (0.19%) in 2020 and 320 new patients (0.07%) from 474,500 person-years of observation in total. Sleep medications and anxiolytics (27%), antidepressants (23%), testosterone enanthate injections (14%), and herbal medicine (Hochuekkito, 12%) were the major prescribed medications. Sleep disorders (29%), neurotic disorders, and stress-related, somatoform (24%), and mood disorders (23%) were the common coexisting conditions. The low proportion of treatment-seeking patients and morbidities compared to the expected prevalence indicates a need for increased awareness and treatment of male menopausal disorders. Similar to prior surveys, patients with male menopausal disorders may have overlapping psychiatric conditions, necessitating careful diagnosis and treatment decisions.