Pharmacology, Doping and Sports: A Complete Scientific Guide for Athletes, Coaches, Physicians, Scientists and Administrators

The work of dope testers is constantly being obstructed by the development of ever harder-to-trace new forms of banned substances. Organisations such as the World Anti-Doping Association and the United States Anti-Doping Agency are pioneering cutting-edge techniques designed to keep competition at the highest level fair and safe, and must ensure that their drug testing laboratories adhere to the highest scientific standards. In Pharmacology, Doping and Sports these techniques and procedures are explained by the anti-doping experts who practice them.

Broad-ranging in scope, this book examines the effects of performance-enhancing substances on the athlete’s health; the role of anti-doping procedures as an ethical question, and explains the background to, and the emergence of, the anti-doping movement. The book also offers in-depth analysis of key scientific matters, such as:

• standard analytical and diagnostic tests for sports doping
• regulatory standards for laboratory proficiency
• common performance-enhancing techniques such as anabolic and designer steroids, blood doping, growth hormones, and gene doping
• carbon-isotope ratio testing.

Written by some of the world’s leading authorities on the science of sports doping, Pharmacology, Doping and Sports provides an invaluable study of up-to-the-minute anti-doping techniques. This book is essential reading for all sports scientists, coaches, policy-makers, students and athletes interested in the science or ethics of doping in sport.

Professor Jean L. Fourcroy is Consultant in Urology and Endocrinology at the Walter Reed Army Hospital, Washington, USA. She is also a member of the board of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.