subject: Use of Steroid Injections by Sportsmen – Major Blight for Authorities [print this page] Use of Steroid Injections by Sportsmen Major Blight for Authorities
It is common knowledge that athletes prefer steroid injections over oral steroids. The explanations are not hard to find. For one, the injectable steroids are safer and pose lesser health risks than their oral counterparts. The reason is that injection form of steroids is free from a peculiar chemical modification that it brings about in the body, causing grievous injuries to the liver and other internal organs. Steroid injections instead have esters to make them last longer and deliver prolonged relief from conditions of pain and inflammation.
Steroid injections are designed to bypass the digestive system of humans. This helps mitigate the side effects drastically when compared to oral steroids. Individual who are recommended long term steroid therapy would do well to adapt to the injection form to lessen the short term and long term side-effects.
Steroid injections are available in oil or water based form. Oil based injectable steroids have much longer half-lives than oral steroids. The frequency with which they are detected in athletes during mandatory post-event blood tests during major sports events can be attributed to the longer half-life of steroid injections. Injecting steroids into the muscle tissue rather than into the veins is recommended by physicians to help them act locally. Placing them into the blood stream can spread them all across the body, increasing the chances of side effects.
Avoid using needles more than once and strictly avoid sharing needles under all circumstances. Doing so can give rise to serious health issues. Alcoholic swab must be at hand to sterilize every part of the injection paraphernalia. Physicians also warn against pre-loading the steroid injection for long periods of time. It can lead to clogging and can also increase the chances of infection.
Despite the fact that steroid injections are banned in all major sports events, they continue to be used in one form or the other. The lure of medals and the fame and fortune that it brings along is a temptation few athletes can surmount making them turn to various forms of steroid injections to overcome competition. Designer steroid injections can make detections impossible unless the testing authorities have access to modern testing equipment and facilities.
