Growth hormones in sports refers to the use of growth hormones (GH or HGH) for athletic enhancement, as opposed to growth hormone treatment for medical therapy. Human Growth Hormone is a prescription medication in the US, meaning that its distribution and use without a prescription is illegal.[1] There is limited evidence that GH doping improves athletic performance, although the perception that it does is common in the sporting community.[2] Potential side effects of long term GH doping could mirror the symptoms found in sufferers of acromegaly, a disease in which the anterior pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone.[2] These symptoms include swelling of the hands and feet, joint pain, fluid retention, and excessive sweating.[3] Human growth hormone occurs naturally in the human body where it functions by stimulating growth of essentially all tissues, including bone.[4] Use of exogenous human growth hormone (HGH), via injection, was originally for medical purposes until athletes began abusing HGH with the goal of increasing their abilities. Before recombinant human growth hormone (rHGH) was developed in 1981, HGH was only available by extracting it from the pituitary glands of cadavers.[3] The arrival of rHGH combined with other peptide hormone advancements has increased the availability of HGH on both the legitimate and black markets.[5] The first description of the use of GM as a doping agent was Dan Duchaine's "Underground Steroid handbook" which emerged from California in 1982; it is not known where and when GM was first used this way.[6] In 1989 the International Olympic Committee became the first to brand human growth hormone a banned substance.[5] Although abuse of human growth hormone for athletic purposes is illegal in the U.S., over the past decade it appears that abuse of HGH is present in all levels of sport.[7][8] This is fueled at least in part by the fact that HGH is more difficult to detect than most other performance-enhancing drugs, such as anabolic steroids Continue reading →

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