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Mats Garle

Publications and source records attributed to Mats Garle.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Criminality among individuals testing positive for the presence of anabolic androgenic steroids.

CONTEXT: Observations suggest that the use of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) may trigger uncontrolled, violent rage. Other observations indicate that certain groups of criminals may use AAS with the intention of being capable of committing crime more efficiently. OBJECTIVE: To examine the proposed association between the use of AAS and criminality. DESIGN: A controlled retrospective cohort study of registered criminal activity among individuals tested for AAS use during the period of January 1, 1995, to December 31, 2001. SETTING: All individuals in Sweden who were tested for AAS use during this period. These individuals were referred for testing from both inpatient and outpatient clinics as well as from centers for treatment of substance abuse. PARTICIPANTS: Individuals testing positive for AAS (n=241), with those testing negative for AAS during the same period (n=1199) serving as the control group. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The ratios (expressed as relative risk [RR]) of the incidences of several categories of crime in the 2 study groups. RESULTS: The risk of having been convicted for a weapons offense or fraud was higher among individuals testing positive for AAS than among those testing negative (RR, 2.090 and 1.511, respectively; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.589-2.749 and 1.208-1.891, respectively) whereas there were no significant differences with respect to violent crimes (RR, 1.116; 95% CI, 0.981-1.269) or crimes against property (RR, 0.942; 95% CI, 0.850-1.044). When patients referred from substance abuse centers were excluded, a lower risk for crimes against property was observed for the individuals who tested positive for AAS (RR, 0.761; 95% CI, 0.649-0.893) and the risk for fraud in the 2 groups was equalized (RR, 1.117; 95% CI, 0.764-1.635). The increased risk for a weapons offense among the individuals testing positive for AAS remained virtually unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to the impulsive violent behavior previously shown to be related to AAS use, such use might also be associated with an antisocial lifestyle involving various types of criminality. However, the existence and nature of this possible association remain unclear and call for further investigation.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Large differences in testosterone excretion in Korean and Swedish men are strongly associated with a UDP-glucuronosyl transferase 2B17 polymorphism.

CONTEXT: The reproductive endocrinology in Asians and Caucasians is of great interest in view of large differences in prostate cancer rate and sensitivity to pharmacological male contraception. In addition, interpretation of certain antidoping tests is confounded by interethnic variation in androgen disposition. Uridine diphosphoglucuronosyl transferases have a key role in the homeostasis and metabolism of androgens. Recently a deletion polymorphism was detected in the UGT2B17 gene. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to evaluate the contribution of the UGT2B17 deletion polymorphism to the interindividual and interethnic variation of androgen metabolism and excretion. METHODS AND RESULTS: Urine from 122 Swedish and 74 Korean healthy men was analyzed for several androgen glucuronides including testosterone. The distribution of the natural logarithms of urinary testosterone concentrations showed a distinct bimodal pattern in both groups, suggesting a monogenic inheritance. When the UGT2B17 genotypes were compared with urinary testosterone levels, all of the individuals of the UGT2B17 homozygous deletion/deletion genotype had no or negligible amounts of urinary testosterone. The deletion/deletion genotype was seven times more common in the Korean (66.7%) than the Swedish population (9.3%). In addition, the Swedes had significantly higher levels of serum testosterone, compared with the Koreans. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that the UGT2B17 polymorphism is strongly associated with the bimodal distribution of the testosterone excretion and also with the large differences in testosterone excretion between Koreans and Swedes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Toxicological findings and manner of death in autopsied users of anabolic androgenic steroids.

With the aim to characterize patterns in toxicological profile and manner of death in deceased users of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS), a retrospective autopsy protocol study of 52 deceased users of AAS was undertaken. The AAS users were compared to 68 deceased users of amphetamine and/or heroin who were consecutively tested and found to be negative for AAS. Use of AAS was in the majority of cases (79%) associated with concomitant use of psychotropic substances. AAS-related deaths differed in several respects from deaths among users of heroin or amphetamine, most strikingly with regard to: (a) the median age at death, which was significantly lower for AAS users (24.5 years) than for users of heroin and/or amphetamine (34 and 40 years, respectively); (b) the manner of death, with AAS users dying significantly more often from homicide or suicide than users of other drugs; and (c) the body mass index (BMI), with AAS users exhibiting significantly higher BMI than users of other drugs. These results support the earlier reported association between use of AAS and use of other psychoactive substances. In addition, the data suggest that AAS users are more likely to become involved in incidents leading to violent death and have a higher risk of dying at a younger age than users of other drugs.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Morbidity and mortality in patients testing positively for the presence of anabolic androgenic steroids in connection with receiving medical care. A controlled retrospective cohort study.

Observations by health-care professionals suggest that the use of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) may be associated with lethal complications, but this has not yet been confirmed by controlled epidemiological studies. Here, we investigated the diagnoses (in the Swedish patient care records) and mortality rate among patients who tested positively for the presence of AAS (n = 248) in connection with receiving medical care. Patients who had tested negatively (n = 1215) were used for comparison. The proportions of patients who had received institutionalized care for substance abuse, psychiatric disorder or central thoracic pain were significantly higher in the AAS-positive subjects (RR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.2-4.2; RR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.4-3.2 and RR = 3.5, 95% CI = 1.1-10.9, respectively). Furthermore, unspecified convulsions were highly over-represented in the AAS-positive group (RR = 53.9, 95% CI = 7.0-415.7) and one of these patients died during a seizure. The standardized mortality ratios (SMR) in the AAS-positive patients and -negative patients were 20.43 (95% CI = 10.56-35.70) and 6.02 (95% CI = 3.77-9.12), respectively. The relatively higher SMR in the AAS-positive patients was observed irrespective of what type clinic had referred the patients for AAS testing. In conclusion, use of AAS appears to be an indicator of increased risk for premature death in several categories of patients. However, the nature of the association between AAS and premature death remains unclear and additional research on this question is urgently required.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

The anti-doping hot-line, a means to capture the abuse of doping agents in the Swedish society and a new service function in clinical pharmacology.

With the support of the Swedish National Institute of Health a national information service was started in 1993 aiming to capture the abuse of doping agents in the general public. It was organized as a telephone service, called the Anti-Doping Hot-Line, from our department and managed by trained nurses co-operating with clinical pharmacologists. Important information collected about all callers (anonymous) was: date of call, its origin, category of caller, doping experience and main question being asked. Abusers were asked about their age, sex, affiliation, abused drug(s), duration of abuse, habit of administration and adverse reactions (ADRs). Between October 1993 and December 2000 25,835 calls were received with a peak during spring and autumn. Most calls (12,400) came from non-abusers, 60% being males. Callers connected with gyms represented the largest group (30%). Most calls about specific drugs concerned anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS). Other drugs or products included ephedrine, clenbuterol and creatine. The most commonly abused anabolic steroids were testosterone, nandrolone-decanoate, methandienone and stanozolol. The ten most commonly reported ADRs of AAS were aggressiveness (835), depression (829), acne (770), gynecomastia (637), anxiousness (637), potency problems (413), testicular atrophy (404), sleep disorders (328), fluid retention (318) and mood disturbances (302). Female side effects included menstruation disturbances, hair growth in the face, lower voice and enlarged clitoris. During the period 1996-200, totally 4339 persons reported about 10,800 side effects. This figure should be compared with the very low number of ADRs (27) reported by prescribers to the Swedish ADR committee during the same period. Abuse of doping agents appears to be a new public health problem that needs detection, medical care and prevention.

Adolescent↗