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- Title
Dilated Cardiomyopathy and Acute Liver Injury Associated with Combined Use of Ephedra, γ-Hydroxybutyrate, and Anabolic Steroids.
- Authors
Clark, Brychan M.; Schofield, Richard S.
- Abstract
Anabolic-androgenic steroids are synthetic derivatives of testosterone that some athletes have used to enhance muscle mass and improve their athletic performance. Ephedrine is a potent sympathomimetic agent that can lead to cardiomyopathy similar to that seen with catecholamine excess. Adverse cardiovascular events attributed to anabolic steroid and ephedra use, such as arrhythmias, myocardial infarction, cardiomyopathy, and sudden death, are rarely reported. Bodybuilders have used γ-hydroxybutyrate, a potent secretagogue of growth hormone, to promote muscle development. Although dilated cardiomyopathy is a known complication of excess growth hormone levels, it has not been associated with use of γ-hydroxybutyrate. A healthy 40-year-old man was admitted to our hospital for new-onset congestive heart failure and severe acute hepatitis that developed several months after he began using anabolic-androgenic steroids, ephedra, and γ-hydroxybutyrate supplements. Analysis with an objective causality assessment scale revealed a probable adverse drug reaction between the patient's use of anabolic steroids, ephedra, and γ-hydroxybutyrate and the development of his cardiomyopathy and acute liver injury.
- Subjects
ANABOLIC steroids; LIVER injuries; EPHEDRA; GAMMA-hydroxybutyrate; EPHEDRACEAE; GABA derivatives; HYDROXY acids; PSYCHIATRIC drugs
- Publication
Pharmacotherapy, 2005, Vol 25, Issue 5, p756
- ISSN
0277-0008
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1592/phco.25.5.756.63592