Androgen abuse epidemiology

Sagoe, Dominic; Pallesen, Ståle

doi:10.1097/med.0000000000000403

Cited by 58 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…2 Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) prescriptions in the US decreased by 50% between 2013 and 2016,3 but remain well above the levels needed to treat pathological hypogonadism 4. Since the 1970s, use of anabolic steroids has spread from athletes to the general population,5 with a lifetime prevalence rate of 6.4% for men 6…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association of genetically predicted testosterone with thromboembolism, heart failure, and myocardial infarction: mendelian randomisation study in UK Biobank

Luo

Yeung

Zhao

et al. 2019

BMJ

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Objective To determine whether endogenous testosterone has a causal role in thromboembolism, heart failure, and myocardial infarction. Design Two sample mendelian randomisation study using genetic variants as instrumental variables, randomly allocated at conception, to infer causality as additional randomised evidence. Setting Reduction by Dutasteride of Prostate Cancer Events (REDUCE) randomised controlled trial, UK Biobank, and CARDIoGRAMplusC4D 1000 Genomes based genome wide association study. Participants 3225 men of European ancestry aged 50-75 in REDUCE; 392 038 white British men and women aged 40-69 from the UK Biobank; and 171 875 participants of about 77% European descent, from CARDIoGRAMplusC4D 1000 Genomes based study for validation. Main outcome measures Thromboembolism, heart failure, and myocardial infarction based on self reports, hospital episodes, and death. Results Of the UK Biobank participants, 13 691 had thromboembolism (6208 men, 7483 women), 1688 had heart failure (1186, 502), and 12 882 had myocardial infarction (10 136, 2746). In men, endogenous testosterone genetically predicted by variants in the JMJD1C gene region was positively associated with thromboembolism (odds ratio per unit increase in log transformed testosterone (nmol/L) 2.09, 95% confidence interval 1.27 to 3.46) and heart failure (7.81, 2.56 to 23.8), but not myocardial infarction (1.17, 0.78 to 1.75). Associations were less obvious in women. In the validation study, genetically predicted testosterone (based on JMJD1C gene region variants) was positively associated with myocardial infarction (1.37, 1.03 to 1.82). No excess heterogeneity was observed among genetic variants in their associations with the outcomes. However, testosterone genetically predicted by potentially pleiotropic variants in the SHBG gene region had no association with the outcomes. Conclusions Endogenous testosterone was positively associated with thromboembolism, heart failure, and myocardial infarction in men. Rates of these conditions are higher in men than women. Endogenous testosterone can be controlled with existing treatments and could be a modifiable risk factor for thromboembolism and heart failure.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association of genetically predicted testosterone with thromboembolism, heart failure, and myocardial infarction: mendelian randomisation study in UK Biobank

Luo

Yeung

Zhao

et al. 2019

BMJ

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“…Some studies assessed the prevalence of AAS use among resistance training practitioners in gyms, resulting in a prevalence range of 4.5 to 24.9% (Pellegrini et al, 2017). Moreover, this kind of drug is commonly used by other categories such as recreational sportspeople, and sexual and gender minorities (Sagoe and Pallesen, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

miRNAs as Novel Biomarkers of Chronic Kidney Injury in Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Users: An Experimental Study

et al. 2020

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miRNAs are a family of 20-22 non-coding nucleotides that control gene expression by inhibiting the translation of their target messenger RNAs (mRNAs). Two models have been proposed to elucidate the mechanism of action: they act either hindering mRNA translation or enhancing mRNA degradation. Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids (AASs) represent a class of drugs used to treat several diseases. In the last few years, AASs have frequently been used for aesthetic purposes, indeed, they form part of the larger group called image-and performance-enhancing drugs (IPEDs). Long-term AAS use can lead to serious health consequences. In this regard, the present study aimed to analyze the role of several microRNAs (miRNAs) in renal damage after AAS use, to better understand the underlying mechanisms. For this purpose, two miRNAs (miR-21 and miR-205) were tested in two groups: AAS group (seven males, mean age 33.28 ± 4.68 years; mean body mass index (BMI) 27.04 ± 1.07), and chronic kidney disease (CKD) group (seven males, mean age 66.2 ± 5.4 years; mean BMI 24.75 ± 1.35). Finally, the same miRNAs were tested in the "Control" group (seven males, mean age 44.85 ± 5.75 years; mean BMI 26.5 ± 1.88). Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test was used to determine the normality of data distribution. All variables were normally distributed. Student's t-test was used for comparisons between two groups. Analyzing the results of the present study, the two tested miRNAs (miR-21 and miR-205) were significantly higher in the CKD group compared to the AAS group, with mir-21 being much more expressed than miR-205. This study represents a pilot study to define if these expression patterns could be studied in other biological samples (plasma, urine) in subjects with different kidney injury linked to chronic kidney diseases and AAS use, to identify reliable biomarkers that could be applied in clinical and forensic diagnostics, as well as a target for toxicological investigations or therapeutic treatments.

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“…Weight-lifters and body-builders were the first athletes to use AAS in sports competitions and later, other athletes followed suit (Griffin and Wilson, 1998). In the early 1980s, AAS use began to spread to individuals engaged in recreational sports, for the purpose of improving body-image (www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/anabolic-steroid-abuse), as well as intravenous drug users, and sexual and gender minorities (Sagoe and Pallesen, 2018). Unfortunately, there are now millions of AAS users worldwide, with most using them to become leaner and more muscular and not for competitive purposes (Parkinson and Evans, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently, it has been reported that AAS abuse is more prevalent in Western countries, the Middle East and Brazil and is less prevalent in Africa and Asia (Sagoe and Pallesen, 2018). Prior to initiation of AAS, users are more likely to be participants in sports, have malfunctioning relationships, psychopathologies, suffer from low self-esteem, negative body image, deviant behavior and history of abusing other drugs, deteriorating school performance and certain personality disorders.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Knowledge, attitudes and use of anabolic-androgenic steroids among male gym users: A community based survey in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Alharbi

Gamaleddin

Alharbi

et al. 2019

Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal

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Recreational use of anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) is a growing worldwide public health concern. However, studies assessing the level of awareness and knowledge of its effects on health are fairly limited, especially in developing countries, including Saudi Arabia. This community-based cross-sectional study was conducted to assess knowledge, attitudes and practices among male gym members toward AAS in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) from March to October 2016. Twenty gyms were randomly selected from four different geographical regions (clusters) within Riyadh. In total, 482 participants responded to the self-administered anonymous questionnaire, which covered socio-demographic data, data assessing knowledge, attitude and behavior related to AAS use. The mean (±standard deviation) age of study participants was 27.2 (±6.9) years. Among these, 29.3% of participants reported having used AAS, while the majority (53.5%) reported hearing of AAS use, mostly through friends. Most study participants reported awareness of the effects of AAS on muscle mass, body weight and muscles strength (53.2%, 51.1% and 45.5%, respectively). In contrast, a higher proportion of study participants were unaware of the side-effects of AAS use. A high proportion of study participants (43.2%) reported that they had been offered AAS and 68.7% believed that AAS are easily accessible. Most of the gym users (90.1%) reported never having used any narcotics or psychoactive drugs. Regression analysis revealed that use of anabolic-androgenic steroids is significantly associated with “weight lifting practice” OR [95%CI] = 1.9[1.02 − 3.61], P = 0.044; “using supplementary vitamins, OR [95%CI] = 7.8[4.05 − 15.03], P < 0.0001, knowing anyone using anabolic-androgenic steroids’ OR [95%CI] = 7.5[3.78 − 14.10], P < 0.0001, and someone advised Gym users to take anabolic-androgenic steroids” OR [95%CI] = 2.26[1.23 − 4.14], P < 0.008. Our findings suggest that the level of awareness regarding the possible side-effects of AAS is fairly limited. Thus, efforts directed toward educating the public and limiting access to AAS as well as health policy reforms are crucial to reduce future negative implications of AAS use.

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Androgen abuse epidemiology

Cited by 58 publications

References 44 publications

Association of genetically predicted testosterone with thromboembolism, heart failure, and myocardial infarction: mendelian randomisation study in UK Biobank

Association of genetically predicted testosterone with thromboembolism, heart failure, and myocardial infarction: mendelian randomisation study in UK Biobank

miRNAs as Novel Biomarkers of Chronic Kidney Injury in Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Users: An Experimental Study

Knowledge, attitudes and use of anabolic-androgenic steroids among male gym users: A community based survey in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

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