Tag: growth hormone

Sports Endocrinology

25 March 2017

SportsEndocrinologyWordCloud

The Endocrine system comprises various glands distributed throughout the body that secrete hormones to circulate in the blood stream. These chemical messengers, have effects on a vast range of tissue types, organs and therefore regulate metabolic and physiological processes occurring in systems throughout the body.

The various hormones produced by the Endocrine system do not work in isolation; they have interactive network effects. The magnitude of influence of a hormone is largely determined by its circulating concentration. This in turn is regulated by feedback loops. For example, too much circulating hormone will have negative feedback effect causing the control-releasing system to down regulate, which will in turn bring the level of the circulating hormone back into range. Ovulation in the menstrual cycle is a rare example of a process induced by positive hormonal feedback.

In the control system of hormone release, there are interactions with other inputs in addition to the circulating concentration of the hormone. The hypothalamus (gland in the brain) is a key gateway in the neuro-endocrine system, coordinating inputs from many sources to regulate output of the pituitary gland, which produces the major stimulating hormones to act on the Endocrine glands throughout the body.

growthhormone

The Endocrine system displays complex dynamics. There are temporal variations in secretion of hormones both in the long term during an individual’s lifetime and on shorter timescales, as seen in the diurnal variation of some hormones such as cortisol, displaying a circadian rhythm of secretion. The most fascinating and complex control system is found in the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis. Variation in both frequency and amplitude of gonadotrophin releasing factor (GnRH) secretion from the hypothalamus dictates initiation of menarche and the subsequent distinct pattern of cyclical patterns of the sex steroids, oestrogen and progesterone.

So what have the Endocrine system and hormone production got to do with athletes and sport performance?

  1. Exercise training stimulates release of certain hormones that support favourable adaptive changes. For example, exercise is a major stimulus of growth hormone, whose action positively affects body composition in terms of lean mass, bone density and reduction of visceral fat.
  2. Disruption of hormones secreted from the Endocrine system can impair sport performance and have potential long term adverse health risks for athletes. This picture is seen in the female athlete triad (disordered eating, amenorrhoea and low bone mineral density) and relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S) with multi-system effects. In this situation there is a mismatch between dietary energy intake (including diet quality) and energy expenditure through training. The net result is a shift to an energy saving mode in the Endocrine system, which impedes both improvement in sport performance and health. RED-S should certainly be considered among the potential causes of sport underperformance, suboptimal health and recurrent injury,  with appropriate medical support being provided.
  3. Caution! Athletic hypothalamic amenorrhoea, as seen in female athletes (in female athlete triad and RED-S) is a diagnosis of exclusion. Other causes of secondary amenorrhoea (cessation of periods >6 months) should be excluded such as pregnancy, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), prolactinoma, ovarian failure and primary thyroid dysfunction.
  4. Unfortunately the beneficial effects of some hormones on sport performance are misused in the case of doping with growth hormone, erythropoeitin (EPO) and anabolic steroids. Excess administered exogenous hormones not only disrupt the normal control feedback loops, but have very serious health risks, which are seen in disease states of excess endogenous hormone secretion.

So the Endocrine system and the circulating hormones are key players not only in supporting health, but in determining sport performance in athletes.

For further discussion on Endocrine and Metabolic aspects of SEM come to the BASEM annual conference 22/3/18: Health, Hormones and Human Performance

References

Sport Performance and RED-S, insights from recent Annual Sport and Exercise Medicine and Innovations in Sport and Exercise Nutrition Conferences Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sports Medicine 17/3/17

Teaching module on RED-S for British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine as CPD for Sports Physicians

Optimal Health: Including Female Athletes! Part 1 – Bones Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine 26/3/17

Optimal Health: Including Male Athletes! Part 2 – REDs Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine 4/4/17

Optimal health: especially young athletes! Part 3 Consequences of Relative Energy Deficiency in sports Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine 13/4/17

Optimal health: for all athletes! Part 4 Mechanisms Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine 13/4/17

Enhancing sport performance: part 1 Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine

Enhancing sports performance: part 3

From population based norms to personalised medicine: Health, Fitness, Sports Performance Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine

Sleep for health and sports performance Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine

Balance of recovery and adaptation for sports performance Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine

Clusters of athletes Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine

Inflammation: why and how much? Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine

Fatigue, Sport Performance and Hormones…Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine

Keay N, Logobardi S, Ehrnborg C, Cittadini A, Rosen T, Healy ML, Dall R, Bassett E, Pentecost C, Powrie J, Boroujerdi M, Jorgensen JOL, Sacca L. Growth hormone (GH) effects on bone and collagen turnover in healthy adults and its potential as a marker of GH abuse in sport: a double blind, placebo controlled study. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism. 85 (4) 1505-1512. 2000.

Wallace J, Cuneo R, Keay N, Sonksen P. Responses of markers of bone and collagen turover to exercise, growth hormone (GH) administration and GH withdrawal in trained adult males. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 2000. 85 (1): 124-33.

Keay N. The effects of growth hormone misuse/abuse. Use and abuse of hormonal agents: Sport 1999. Vol 7, no 3, 11-12.

Wallace J, Cuneo R, Baxter R, Orskov H, Keay N, Sonksen P. Responses of the growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like factor axis to exercise,GH administration and GH withdrawal in trained adult males: a potential test for GH abuse in sport. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 1999. 84 (10): 3591-601.

Keay N, Logobardi S, Ehrnborg C, Cittadini A, Rosen T, Healy ML, Dall R, Bassett E, Pentecost C, Powrie J, Boroujerdi M, Jorgensen JOL, Sacca L. Growth hormone (GH) effects on bone and collagen turnover in healthy adults and its potential usefulness as in the detection of GH abuse in sport: a double blind, placebo controlled study. Endocrine Society Conference 1999.

Wallace J, Cuneo R, Keay N. Bone markers and growth hormone abuse in athletes. Growth hormone and IGF Research, vol 8: 4: 348.

Keay N, Fogelman I, Blake G. Effects of dance training on development,endocrine status and bone mineral density in young girls.Current Research in Osteoporosis and bone mineral measurement 103, June 1998.

Keay N, Effects of dance training on development, endocrine status and bone mineral density in young girls, Journal of Endocrinology, November 1997, vol 155, OC15.

Keay N, Fogelman I, Blake G. Bone mineral density in professional female dancers. British Journal of Sports Medicine, vol 31 no2, 143-7, June 1997.

Keay N. Bone mineral density in professional female dancers. IOC World Congress on Sports Sciences. October 1997.

Keay N, Bone Mineral Density in Professional Female Dancers, Journal of Endocrinology, November 1996, volume 151, supplement p5.

Optimal health: for all athletes! Part 4 Mechanisms

17 January 2017

As described in previous blogs, the female athlete triad (disordered eating, amenorrhoea, low bone mineral density) is part of Relative Energy Deficiency in sports (RED-S). RED-S has multi-system effects and can affect both female and male athletes together with young athletes. The fundamental issue is a mismatch of energy availability and energy expenditure through exercise training. As described in previous blogs this situation leads to a range of adverse effects on both health and sports performance. I have tried to unravel the mechanisms involved. Please note the diagram below is simplified view: I have only included selected major neuroendocrine control systems.

REDs

Low energy availability is an example of a metabolic stressor. Other sources of stress in an athlete will be training load and possibly inadequate sleep. These physiological and psychological stressors input into the neuroendocrine system via the hypothalamus. Low plasma glucose concentrations stimulates release of glucagon and suppression of the antagonist hormone insulin from the pancreas. This causes mobilisation of glycogen stores and fat deposits. Feedback of this metabolic situation to the hypothalamus, in the short term is via low blood glucose and insulin levels and in longer term via low levels of leptin from reduced fat reserves.

A critical body weight and threshold body fat percentage was proposed as a requirement for menarche and subsequent regular menstruation by Rose Frisch in 1984. To explain the mechanism behind this observation, a peptide hormone leptin is secreted by adipose tissue which acts on the hypothalamus. Leptin is one of the hormones responsible for enabling the episodic, pulsatile release of gonadotrophin releasing hormone (GnRH) which is key in the onset of puberty, menarche in girls and subsequent menstrual cycles. In my 3 year longitudinal study of 87 pre and post-pubertal girls, those in the Ballet stream had lowest body fat and leptin levels associated with delayed menarche and low bone mineral density (BMD) compared to musical theatre and control girls. Other elements of body composition also play a part as athletes tend to have higher lean mass to fat mass ratio than non-active population and energy intake of 45 KCal/Kg lean mass is thought to be required for regular menstruation.

Suppression of GnRH pulsatility, results in low secretion rates of pituitary trophic factors LH and FSH which are responsible for regulation of sex steroid production by the gonads. In the case of females this manifests as menstrual disruption with associated anovulation resulting in low levels of oestradiol. In males this suppression of the hypothamlamic-pituitary-gonadal axis results in low testosterone production. In males testosterone is aromatised to oestradiol which acts on bone to stimulate bone mineralisation. Low energy availability is an independent factor of impaired bone health due to decreased insulin like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) concentrations. Low body weight was found to be an independent predictor of BMD in my study of 57 retired pre-menopausal professional dancers. Hence low BMD is seen in both male and female athletes with RED-S. Low age matched BMD in athletes is of concern as this increases risk of stress fracture.  In long term suboptimal BMD is irrecoverable even if normal function of hypothamlamic-pituitary-gonadal function is restored, as demonstrated in my study of retired professional dancers. In young athletes RED-S could result in suboptimal peak bone mass (PBM) and associated impaired bone microstructure. Not an ideal situation if RED-S continues into adulthood.

Another consequence of metabolic, physiological and psychological stressor input to the hypothalamus is suppression of the secretion of thyroid hormones, including the tissue conversion of T4 to the more active T3. Athletes may display a variation of “non-thyroidal illness/sick euthyroid” where both TSH and T4 and T3 are in low normal range. Thyroid hormone receptors are expressed in virtually all tissues which explains the extensive effects of suboptimal levels of T4 and T3 in RED-S including on physiology and metabolism.

In contrast, a neuroendocrine control axis that is activated in RED-S is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. In this axis, stressors increase the amplitude of the pulsatile secretion of CRH, which in turn increases the release of ACTH and consequently cortisol secretion from the adrenal cortex. Elevated cortisol suppresses immunity and increases risk of infection. Long term cortisol elevation also impairs the other hormone axes: growth hormone, thyroid and reproductive. In other words the stress response in RED-S amplifies the suppression of key hormones both directly and indirectly via endocrine network interactions.

The original female athlete triad is part of RED-S which can involve male and female athletes of all ages. There are a range of interacting endocrine systems responsible for the multi-system effects seen in RED-S. These effects can impact on current and future health and sports performance.

For further discussion on Endocrine and Metabolic aspects of SEM come to the BASEM annual conference 22/3/18: Health, Hormones and Human Performance

References

Teaching module on RED-S for BASEM as CPD for Sports Physicians

Optimal health: including female athletes! Part 1 Bones Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine

Optimal health: including male athletes! Part 2 Relative Energy Deficiency in sports Dr N.Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine 4/4/17

Optimal health: especially young athletes! Part 3 Consequences of Relative Energy Deficiency in sports Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine

Keay N, Fogelman I, Blake G. Effects of dance training on development,endocrine status and bone mineral density in young girls. Current Research in Osteoporosis and bone mineral measurement 103, June 1998.

Jenkins P, Taylor L, Keay N. Decreased serum leptin levels in females dancers are affected by menstrual status. Annual Meeting of the Endocrine Society. June 1998.

Keay N, Dancing through adolescence. Editorial, British Journal of Sports Medicine, vol 32 no 3 196-7, September 1998.

Keay N, Effects of dance training on development, endocrine status and bone mineral density in young girls, Journal of Endocrinology, November 1997, vol 155, OC15.

Relative Energy Deficiency in sport (REDs) Lecture by Professor Jorum Sundgot-Borgen, IOC working group on female athlete triad and IOC working group on body composition, health and performance. BAEM Spring Conference 2015.

Mountjoy M, Sundgot-Borgen J, Burke L, Carter S, Constantini N, Lebrun C, Meyer N, Sherman R, Steffen K, Budgett R, Ljungqvist A. The IOC consensus statement: beyond the Female Athlete Triad-Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S).Br J Sports Med. 2014 Apr;48(7):491-7.

“Subclinical hypothydroidism in athletes”. Lecture by Dr Kristeien Boelaert at BASEM Spring Conference 2014 on the Fatigued Athlete

From population based norms to personalised medicine: Health, Fitness, Sports Performance Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine

Sleep for Health and Sports Performance

22 December 2016

“Sleep.. chief nourisher in life’s feast,” Macbeth.

In my blog for British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine, I described improving sport performance by balancing the adaptive changes induced by training together with the recovery strategies to facilitate this, both in the short and long term.  alec0120-12x17

A recovery strategy which is vital in supporting both health and sport performance, during all stages of the training cycle is sleep.

Sufficient sleep is especially important in young athletes for growth and development and in order to support adaptive changes stimulated by training and to prevent injury. Amongst teenage athletes, studies have shown that a lack of sleep is associated with higher incidence of injury. This may be partly due to impaired proprioception associated with reduced sleep. Sleep is vital for consolidating neurological function and protein synthesis, for example in skeletal muscle. Sleep and exercise are both stimuli for growth hormone release from the anterior pituitary, which mediates some of these adaptive effects.

Lack of sleep can also interfere with functioning of the immune system due to disruption of the circadian rhythm of secretion in key areas of the Endocrine system. Athletes in heavy training, with high “stress” loads and associated elevated cortisol can also experience functional immunosuppression. So a combination of high training load and insufficient sleep can compound to disrupt efficient functioning of the immune system and render athletes more susceptible to illness and so inability to train, adapt and recover effectively.  Lack of sleep disrupts carbohydrate metabolism and recently found to suppress expression of genes regulating cholesterol transport. In overreaching training, lack of sleep could be either a cause or a symptom of insufficient recovery. Certainly sleep deprivation impairs exercise performance capacity (especially aerobic exercise) although whether this is due to a psychological, physical or combination effect is not certain.

Sufficient sleep quality and quantity is required for cognitive function, motor learning, and memory consolidation. All skills that are important for sports performance, especially in young people where there is greater degree of neuroplasticity with potential to develop neuromuscular skills. In a fascinating recorded lecture delivered by Professor Jim Horne at the Royal Society of Medicine, the effects of prolonged wakefulness were described. Apart from slowing reaction time, the executive function of the prefrontal cortex involved in critical decision making is impaired. Important consequences not only for athletes, but for doctors, especially for those of us familiar with the on call system in hospitals back in the bad old days. Sleep pattern pre and post concussive events in teenage athletes is found to be related to degree and duration of concussive symptoms post injury. The explanation of how sleep deprivation can cause these functional effects on the brain has been suggested in a study where subtle changes in cerebral neuronal structural properties were recorded. It is not known whether these changes have long term effects.

So given that sleep is essential not only for health and fitness, but to support sports performance, what strategies to maximise this vital recovery process? Use of electronic devices shortly before bedtime suppresses secretion of melatonin (neurotransmitter and hormone), which is a situation not conducive for sleep. Tryptophan is an amino acid precursor in the synthesis of melatonin and serotonin (neurotransmitter) both of which promote sleep. Recent research demonstrates that protein intake before bed can support skeletal and muscle adaptation from exercise and also recovery from tendon injury. Conversely there is recent report that low levels of serotonin synthesis may contribute to the pathogenesis of autoimmune inflammatory disease such as rheumatoid arthritis. This highlights the subtle balance between degree of change required for positive adaptation and a negative over-response, as in inflammatory conditions. This balance is different for each individual, depending on the clinical setting. So maybe time to revisit the warm milky drink before bed? Like any recovery strategy, sleep can also be periodised to support exercise training, with well structured napping during the day as described by Dr Hannah Macleod, member of gold winning Olympic Hockey team.

In conclusion, when you are planning your training cycle, don’t forget that periodised recovery to compliment your schedule should be factored in, with sleep a priority recovery and adaptation strategy.

For further discussion on Endocrine and Metabolic aspects of SEM come to the BASEM annual conference 22/3/18: Health, Hormones and Human Performance

References

Balance of recovery and adaptation for sports performance Dr N. Keay, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine

Sleep, Injury and Performance

Keay N. The effects of growth hormone misuse/abuse. Use and abuse of hormonal agents: Sport 1999. Vol 7, no 3, 11-12.

Wallace J, Cuneo R, Keay N, Sonksen P. Responses of markers of bone and collagen turover to exercise, growth hormone (GH) administration and GH withdrawal in trained adult males. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 2000. 85 (1): 124-33.

Sleep and sporting performance

Young people: neuromuscular skills for sports performance

Prolonged sleep restriction induces changes in pathways involved in cholesterol metabolism and inflammatory responses

“Sleepiness and critical decision making”. Recorded lecture Professor Jim Horne, Royal Society of Medicine 16/11/16

What Does Sleep Deprivation Actually Do To The Brain?

Pre-Sleep Protein Ingestion to Improve the Skeletal Muscle Adaptive Response to Exercise Training

Exercise and fitness in young people – what factors contribute to long term health? Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sports Medicine

Serotonin Synthesis Enzyme Lack Linked With Rheumatoid Arthritis

“Science in Elite Sport” Dr Hannah Macleod, University of Roehampton, 6/12/16

Factors Impacting Bone Development

1 December 2016

Optimal body mass index (BMI) coupled with favourable body composition of lean mass and visceral fat is associated with accrual of bone mineral density (BMD) and peak bone mass (PBM) which is vital for setting up BMD within normal ranges for adult life.

New research demonstrates that high BMI exerts a negative effect on the accumulation of BMD and bone architecture in young people. This is something of a surprise. Elevated BMI in young people is known to have a deleterious effect on cardio-metabolic health. However, to date the thinking has been that raised BMI would at least mean that weight bearing exercise would be “weighted” and hence favour accumulation of BMD. Rather it is reported that elevated BMI with increased visceral fat results in impaired bone architecture and BMD. Coupled with decreased lean mass, this means less muscle to exert force on the skeleton to promote BMD accumulation. This distorted body composition impairs attainment of PBM.screen-shot-2016-12-01-at-08-29-56

In my research, deficiency of BMD was found to be irreversible later in adult life, despite normalising body weight, shown for those at the other end of the spectrum of BMI. Those with relative energy deficiency in sports (REDs), formally known as the female athlete triad, demonstrated suboptimal BMD correlated with previous duration of low weight, amenorrhea and delayed onset of menarche, many years on despite return to optimal body weight and normal menstrual status.

Adverse body composition with increased deposition of visceral fat is seen in patients with growth hormone (GH) deficiency, for example post pituitary surgery. Interestingly in these young people with high levels of visceral fat, low levels of GH were recorded. The proposed mechanism of suppression of GH secretion in overweight young people has been discussed. Interestingly high levels of leptin are found in overweight youngsters, compared to low levels found my studies of low weight young dancers with menstrual disturbance. In other words, there appears to be feedback between body weight, body composition and the endocrine system. The other disadvantage of high levels of adipose tissue is that fat soluble vitamin D is “fat locked” and unable to support bone mineral accumulation.

Optimal BMI and body composition are factors associated with accrual of BMD and PBM which is vital for setting up BMD within normal ranges for adult life. In those young people with high BMI and disrupted body composition, dietary measures are needed to reduce body weight. Combined with exercise, including resistance and cardiovascular weight bearing forms, to improve body composition and thus bone architecture and BMD accrual.

For further discussion on Endocrine and Metabolic aspects of SEM come to the BASEM annual conference 22/3/18: Health, Hormones and Human Performance

References

Optimal health: including female athletes! Part 1 Bones Dr N. Keay, British Journal Sport Medicine

Optimal Health: Especially Young Athletes! Part 3 – Consequences of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sports Dr N. Keay, British Association Sport and Exercise Medicine

Science Daily

EurekaAlert

Paediatric Reports

Enhancing Sport Performance: part 1

6 November 2016

The good, the bad and the ugly

A medical perspective on clean athletes, dopers and abuse of the system

When I worked with the international medical research team investigating a method for detecting athletes doping with growth hormone (GH), I was struck by the co-operation of the medical teams and the athletes supporting this research in various countries. This project was supported by the International Olympic Committee and the drug companies manufacturing growth hormone who did not want to see this product mis-used.

growthhormone

Why would athletes seek to dope with GH? GH alters body composition by increasing lean mass and decreasing fat mass, a potential advantage for power sports. In addition to this anabolic effect, GH is potentially advantageous to physiology and metabolism in endurance sport by increasing use of lipid over glycogen as a substrate. However there are serious side effects of elevated GH levels as seen in patients suffering with acromegaly: including increased risk of diabetes mellitus, hypertension and cancer.

One of the challenges we encountered in developing a dope test for GH was that endogenously secreted growth hormone was virtually identical to the manufactured product. In addition, this peptide hormone is released episodically in a pulsatile manner and has a short plasma half life. So early on it was realised that direct measurement of growth hormone was not a reliable option, rather quantification of indirect plasma markers would be required. In turn that meant investigating the pharmacokinetic properties of these markers in exercising people.

So far so good. However what are the “normal” ranges for growth hormone and these secondary markers in elite athletes? The ranges used in the usual clinical hospital setting may not be accurate as exercise is a major stimulus for growth hormone release. Part of the reason elite athletes are better than amateur athletes is that they may have slightly different physiology and/or genetically determined physiology that responds more rapidly to training than the rest of us. So the first step was establishing what normal ranges are for growth hormone and its associated markers in elite athletes. Cue trips to Manchester velodrome with portable centrifuges, taking blood from Olympic medal winning rowers at the British Olympic Park and numerous evenings performing VO2 max tests on athletes.

Throughout this research I was struck by the desire of the elite athletes to participate in a study that would identify cheats, allowing them, as clean athletes, to compete on a level playing field. This gave those of us in medical research team extra incentive to come up with the most reliable and robust test possible. Nevertheless, we were aware that an arms race was taking place, with the dopers trying equally hard to cheat our test. Ultimately, however scientifically robust a test may be, it will not succeed if there is manipulation of the samples provided. This is what makes the alleged systemic abuse of the process so ugly.

For further discussion on Endocrine and Metabolic aspects of SEM come to the BASEM annual conference 22/3/18: Health, Hormones and Human Performance

References

Sports Endocrinology – what does it have to do with performance? Dr N. Keay, British Journal of Sports Medicine

From population based norms to personalised medicine: Health, Fitness, Sports Performance Dr N.Keay, British Journal of Sport Medicine 22/2/17

Keay N, Logobardi S, Ehrnborg C, Cittadini A, Rosen T, Healy ML, Dall R, Bassett E, Pentecost C, Powrie J, Boroujerdi M, Jorgensen JOL, Sacca L. Growth hormone (GH) effects on bone and collagen turnover in healthy adults and its potential as a marker of GH abuse in sport: a double blind, placebo controlled study. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism. 85 (4) 1505-1512. 2000.

Wallace J, Cuneo R, Keay N, Sonksen P. Responses of markers of bone and collagen turover to exercise, growth hormone (GH) administration and GH withdrawal in trained adult males. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 2000. 85 (1): 124-33

Keay N. The effects of growth hormone misuse/abuse. Use and abuse of hormonal agents: Sport 1999. Vol 7, no 3, 11-12

Wallace J, Cuneo R, Baxter R, Orskov H, Keay N, Sonksen P. Responses of the growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like factor axis to exercise,GH administration and GH withdrawal in trained adult males: a potential test for GH abuse in sport. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 1999. 84 (10): 3591-601

Keay N, Logobardi S, Ehrnborg C, Cittadini A, Rosen T, Healy ML, Dall R, Bassett E, Pentecost C, Powrie J, Boroujerdi M, Jorgensen JOL, Sacca L. Growth hormone (GH) effects on bone and collagen turnover in healthy adults and its potential usefulness as in the detection of GH abuse in sport: a double blind, placebo controlled study. Endocrine Society Conference 1999

Wallace J, Cuneo R, Keay N. Bone markers and growth hormone abuse in athletes. Growth hormone and IGF Research, vol 8: 4: 348

Cuneo R, Wallace J, Keay N. Use of bone markers to detect growth hormone abuse in sport. Proceedings of Annual Scientific Meeting, Endocrine Society of Australia. August 1998, vol 41, p55

Enabling Sport Performance: part 2

Enhancing sports performance: part 3