July 10th, 2008
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This news item is more than a year old. Links, graphics, content, medical information, and statistics may be out of date. We invite you to search, visit our homepage, or contact us to find more current information on the topic you're looking for.Anabolic Steroids Helpful for Lung Disease Patients
Thu December 18, 2003 12:03 PM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The drugs notorious for helping bodybuilders pile on muscle can improve the strength of people who have chronic obstructive lung disease, or COPD, such as emphysema.
A short-term course of treatment with nandrolone decanoate, an anabolic steroid, has a positive effect on body composition in patients with COPD, according to the results of a study in the medical journal Chest.
"Skeletal muscle weakness commonly occurs in patients with COPD," Dr. Eva C. Creutzberg, of University Hospital Maastricht, the Netherlands, and colleagues write. The long-term use of glucocorticosteroids to reduce inflammation can also contribute to muscle weakness in these patients.
Reference:
Chest. 2003 Nov;124(5):1733-42.
A role for anabolic steroids in the rehabilitation of patients with COPD? A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial.
Creutzberg EC, Wouters EF, Mostert R, Pluymers RJ, Schols AM.