Article Sidebar
Published:
Apr 26, 2016Article Details
Copyright remains in the Author’s name. The work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution - Noncommercial Works License. Authors are required to complete and sign an Author Agreement form that outlines Author and Publisher rights and terms of publication. The Agreement form should be uploaded along with other submissions files and any submission will be considered incomplete without it [forthcoming].
Material submitted for publication in the SAMJ is accepted provided it has not been published or submitted for publication elsewhere. Please inform the editorial team if the main findings of your paper have been presented at a conference and published in abstract form, to avoid copyright infringement. The SAMJ does not hold itself responsible for statements made by the authors.
Previously published images
If an image/figure has been previously published, permission to reproduce or alter it must be obtained by the authors from the original publisher and the figure legend must give full credit to the original source. This credit should be accompanied by a letter indicating that permission to reproduce the image has been granted to the author/s. This letter should be uploaded as a supplementary file during submission.
Main Article Content
Unintentional doping through the use of contaminated nutritional supplements
Abstract
Design. A contaminated nutritional supplement was used, identified in an ongoing study screening over-the-counter nutritional supplements. One capsule of the supplement, containing small amounts of 19-nor-4-androstenedione and 4-androsten-3,17-dione, not listed on the label, was administered to 5 healthy male volunteers. Fractional urine collection was done at prescribed intervals.
Outcome measures. The samples were analysed using gas chromatography /mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Samples containing 19-norandrosterone, the main metabolite of 19-nor-4-androstenedione, were quantified using GC/MS.
Results. All the volunteers had urinary concentrations of 19-norandrosterone above the World Anti-Doping Agency threshold of 2 ng/ml from 2 hours post administration. In 2 volunteers.19-norandrosterone above the threshold value could still be detected beyond 36 hours post administration. The highest concentration of 19-norandrosterone found in a sample was 54.6 ng/ml at 8 hours post administration.
Conclusion. The results of this study showed that the intake of microgram amounts of a prohibited substance in a nutritional supplement could cause an athlete to fail a dope test.
