testosterone delivery options

I'm going to use this post as a dumping ground for a whole bunch of links to PubMed articles that someone thoughtfully collected about a couple of alternative methods of T delivery- pellet implantation and long-lasting shots.

Seems like both of these options have been explored as various hormone delivery methods, for birth control and also for hormones for non-trans folks. The general idea is to get one shot, or have some pellets implanted, every 3 months, which will then slowly disburse the hormone over the next few months. Supposedly, it can offer more stable and consistent dosing, without the peaks and troughs associated with more frequent injections. Not to mention, of course, that you only have to get stabbed with a needle 4 times a year instead of anywhere from 26-52 times, depending on one's shot schedule.

I've been having a harder time giving myself my shots lately, both because there's no more novelty or thrill about it, and because the shots themselves have seemed to get a bit more difficult. I don't know if it's because I've lost some subcutaneous fat, or because I've got scar tissue building up or what, but I often have difficulty/pain when actually piercing my thigh with the needle, which never happened the first few months I was doing it. I switch thighs each shot, and try to move around within the few square inches of target area, but I often feel more resistance to the needle moving through my skin, and sometimes a really sharp/stabby pain- it makes me imagine that I've brushed a nerve with the needle, though I don't know how medically plausible that is.

Anyway, it's getting to the point where getting a shot only 4 times a year sounds really appealing right now. The pellets are approved in the US, and I've heard of transguys using them, but they're often described as more expensive. Who knows if my insurance would cover it or not. The quarterly shot is apparently not yet available in the US, though rumor has it that it's currently seeking approval from the FDA. Maybe my doc at Callen Lorde will have more information. I certainly intend to ask him, when I go in for my next physical. I think my next appointment is sometime this fall- we decided to check in earlier than the usual 6 months, since my levels were low last time we checked.

In the meantime, here are the PubMed links, for reference.

Pellets:

1)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15049955&itool=iconabstr&query_hl=8&itool=pubmed_DocSum

2)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=9373452&itool=iconabstr&query_hl=8&itool=pubmed_DocSum

3)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=9245845&query_hl=7&itool=pubmed_docsum

4)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=16193074&query_hl=7&itool=pubmed_docsum

5)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=3139571&query_hl=7&itool=pubmed_DocSum

6)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=8796140&query_hl=12&itool=pubmed_docsum

7)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=3432395&query_hl=16&itool=pubmed_docsum

8)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=9061431&query_hl=21&itool=pubmed_DocSum

9)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15297434&query_hl=29&itool=pubmed_docsum

10)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=10583314&query_hl=10&itool=pubmed_docsum
Quarterly Shots:

1) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17701659&ordinalpos=2&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
2) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17635694&ordinalpos=5&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
3)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17579193&ordinalpos=6&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
4)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17486268&ordinalpos=8&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
5)http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17178558&ordinalpos=17&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum