Massachusetts General Hospital

Long-term anabolic steroid use may weaken heart more than previously thought

27/Apr/2010

Long-term anabolic steroid use may weaken the heart more than previously thought and may increase the risk of heart failure, according to research reported in Circulation: Heart Failure, an American Heart Association journal.

"Anabolic steroids, in addition to being illegal, have important health consequences," said Aaron L. Baggish, M.D., lead author of the study and instructor in the Department of Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. "I think for the first time we're starting to realize that the heart is one of the organs that is negatively impacted by long-term steroid use."

link to full American Heart Association release

Media Contacts: Jennifer Gundersen, (617) 724-6433, jgundersen1@partners.org