forgive my ignorance, but maybe our problem is less hormonal and more directly related to the absense of 5 AR. Is it possible to have a “normal” level of DHT but yet have no 5 AR, or is 5 AR absolutely necessary for there to be DHT in the system? If it’s not necessary, then maybe the DHT tests aren’t enough
Anyone got an answer for this?
To the best of my knowledge and in the numerous studies on this site and elswhere, 5AR is required for conversion of T to DHT.
So if you are producing DHT, you have 5AR enzymes. However, that’s not to say that whatever Finasteride did by blocking 5AR is not cause for concern (ie, possible gene mutation of the androgen receptor/5AR enzyme, or downregulation of expression of one or the other due to abscence of DHT/5AR-II… maybe that’s why we’re having problems, since the enzymes/androgen receptor don’t recognize each other the same way since Finasteride… just a thought).
If you can get 5AR tested, by all means do it. But DHT levels should be a good indication of wether your 5AR system is in fact working.