Certain medical conditions can cause your body to stop making normal levels of testosterone. Plus, your testosterone levels drop as you age, which can further complicate things. When you experience undesirable symptoms from having low testosterone in your body, your doctor might suggest you start testosterone replacement therapy. The goal is to supply testosterone to bring your levels to normal, and the therapy can be administered through patches, gels, injections, and pellets. Here's some information on taking testosterone therapy with pellets.

The Pellets Are Placed Under Your Skin 

Testosterone is delivered through the skin in some form because taking it orally can harm your liver. Your doctor may give you an oral form of testosterone, but it is dissolved in your mouth rather than swallowed. When you have pellet therapy, the doctor makes an incision in your skin and inserts a pellet underneath so the testosterone can be absorbed by your body. This incision is closed with a bandage, and no stitches are needed since the pellets are tiny.

Testosterone Pellets Are Long-Acting

One of the main benefits of having a testosterone pellet placed under your skin is that a single treatment can last for months since the pellet is absorbed slowly over time. Gels have to be applied at least once daily, and if you forget, your testosterone level can fall. Injections last a few weeks, but you have to make frequent visits to your doctor to get them. When you have a pellet put in, you have a minor procedure done, and then you don't have to worry about taking your testosterone again until your next doctor's appointment in several months.

The Testosterone In Pellets Doesn't Affect Your Kids

One caution that's necessary when you use gel testosterone or some other form that's applied to the skin, is that you have to keep your distance from your kids and female partner until all the testosterone is absorbed. That's because it could spread to them through contact and give them increased levels of testosterone in their blood. Too much testosterone could have undesirable effects on children and women, so you want to avoid this complication. When you have the therapy in pellet form, no one comes in contact with the testosterone but you.

This type of testosterone therapy might not be suitable for you, so you'll need to discuss all of your options with your doctor. It's more difficult to regulate the dose when you have a pellet inserted, so your doctor may prefer gel or injections that can be altered easily. However, when it's suitable, using pellets makes taking testosterone replacement therapy convenient and, you never have to worry about missing a dose because you forgot to apply gel.