Figure 1.

CONSORT flow diagram. We assessed for eligibility (chart screening) 4,533 patients admitted to the University of Texas Medical Branch hospital with an acute onset medical disease or condition. Inclusion criteria were age at least 65 years, residing at home before and after hospitalization, ability to provide informed consent, self-reported ability to walk across a small room (with or without an assistive device) 2 weeks before hospitalization, ability to stand independently at baseline testing, no medical contraindication to wearing a step activity monitor on one ankle. Exclusion criteria for all patients were residing at a nursing home, hospice, uncontrolled blood pressure, history of stroke with motor disability, renal insufficiency, aspartate transaminase/alanine aminotransferase two times above the normal limit or hyperbilirubinemia, treatment with anabolic steroids within 3 months, planned/elective hospitalization within 30 days of discharge, cognitive dysfunction including delirium, living more than 30 miles from the hospital. Additional exclusion criteria for the testosterone arm were history of breast or prostate cancer, palpable prostate nodule or induration or prostate specific antigen at least 4 ng/ml (≥ 3 ng/ml in men at high risk of prostate cancer), hematocrit at least 50%, or decompensated heart failure.