Anavar - Interesting study

[Juice Authority]

Anavar seems to be a very popular oral on this board. Some studies that not only cite anavars ability to promote mass, but also improves respiratory function.


Rutkove SB, Parker RA, Nardin RA, Connolly CE, Felice KJ, Raynor EM.

Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA. [email protected]

BACKGROUND: Inclusion body myositis (IBM) remains without effective therapy. As anabolic steroids have myotrophic properties, the authors studied whether a synthetic androgen, oxandrolone, would have efficacy in IBM. METHODS: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design was used. Patients received oxandrolone or placebo for 12 weeks followed by a minimum 2-month washout period, followed by 12 weeks of the alternative treatment. Maximal voluntary isometric contraction testing (MVICT), manual muscle testing (MMT), and functional performance testing were obtained before and after each treatment period, with the whole-body MVICT score as the primary outcome measure. RESULTS: Of 19 patients enrolled, 16 (14 men, 2 women; median age 68.5 years) had complete data for at least the first treatment period, with 13 completing the entire study. Whole-body MVICT improved by a median of 15.5 kg with drug and 4.1 kg with placebo (p = 0.06), whereas MMT demonstrated a median increase of 2.0 Medical Research Council points with drug and 0.9 point with placebo (p = 0.33). Upper-extremity MVICT demonstrated a significant treatment effect, with strength increasing a median 6.3 kg with drug vs 2.5 kg with placebo (p = 0.006). Stair climbing also increased a median of 1 step on average with drug versus no change with placebo (p < 0.001). Minimal adverse effects occurred. CONCLUSIONS: Oxandrolone had a borderline significant effect in improving whole-body strength and a significant effect in improving upper-extremity strength as measured by MVICT. Given these findings, further study of this drug, possibly in combination with an immunomodulating agent, is warranted.

 

[HUCKLEBERRY FINNaplex]

Nice study,too bad they didn't delve into HOW the ox was achieving these results on the molecular level,and what dosages they were using.Either way,they are just justifying what we as BB'ers already were aware of,lol.

 

[Juice Authority]

Here's another...

Spungen AM, Grimm DR, Strakhan M, Pizzolato PM, Bauman WA.

Rehabilitation Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary complications are a major cause of morbidity and mortality among individuals with cervical spinal cord lesions. Strengthening of the respiratory musculature may reduce these complications. Anabolic steroids have been used to increase muscle mass and improve muscle performance. Oxandrolone, an anabolic steroid, may have beneficial effects on breathing in persons with tetraplegia. METHODS: The effect of one-month treatment with oxandrolone on weight gain and pulmonary function was studied in ten subjects with complete motor tetraplegia. Spirometry, maximal inspiratory and expiratory pressures, and resting self-rating of dyspnea (Borg Scale) were measured at baseline and repeated again at the end of one month of oxandrolone therapy (20 mg/day). Serum lipid profiles and liver function tests were performed before and after treatment. A paired t-test was used to determine pre- and post-treatment differences on the dependent variables. Percent change from baseline was calculated for each variable and tested using a one-sample t-test. RESULTS: On average, the subjects gained 1.4+/-1.5 kg, a 2+/-2% increase in weight (p=0.01). A significant, 9+/-2% improvement was found in the combined measures of spirometry (p<0.005). Maximal inspiratory pressure improved an average of 10+/-7% (p<0.001). Maximal expiratory pressure improved 9+/-13% (non-significant). Subjective self-rating of dyspnea decreased an average of 37+/-28% (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: In healthy subjects with tetraplegia, the use of oxandrolone was associated with significant improvements in weight and pulmonary function, and a subjective reduction in breathlessness. Therefore, oxandrolone may be indicated to strengthen respiratory musculature in individuals who have tetraplegia and ventilatory insufficiency aggravated by superimposition of pneumonia or other such conditions. However, long-term use of oxandrolone may not be indicated, due to the adverse complications associated with this class of agents.

 

[Juice Authority]

One more:

Oxandrolone in trauma patients.
Pharmacotherapy 2000 Nov;20(11):1328-34 (ISSN: 0277-0008)
Gervasio JM; Dickerson RN; Swearingen J; Yates ME; Yuen C; Fabian TC; Croce MA; Brown RO
Department of Clinical Pharmacy, University of Tennessee-Memphis 38163, USA.
STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of oxandrolone administration on nutritional and clinical outcomes after multiple trauma. DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. SETTING: Level 1 trauma center in a university teaching hospital. PATIENTS: Sixty-two patients requiring enteral nutrition, 60 of whom completed the study. INTERVENTION: Patients were randomized to receive either oxandrolone 10 mg or placebo twice/day for a maximum of 28 days. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Total urinary nitrogen, prealbumin, nitrogen balance, total body water, and body cell mass were measured on day 1 of enteral nutrition and then at day 7, day 10, and study exit. Patients were assessed daily for metabolic and infectious complications. The two groups were similar for demographics and dosage of enteral nutrition. Measurement of total urinary nitrogen at study entry showed both groups to be highly catabolic (oxandrolone 17.2 +/- 4.9, placebo 19.1 +/- 10.8 g/day, NS). On days 7 and 10, total urinary nitrogen increased in both groups; however, there was no significant difference between groups. Nitrogen balance was negative throughout the study in each group. Body cell mass decreased slightly in both groups over the study period. Prealbumin serum concentrations increased significantly in both groups at day 10 and study exit compared with study entry. The groups did not differ significantly for length of hospital stay (oxandrolone 30.8 +/- 17.9, placebo 27.0 +/- 25.7 days), length of intensive care unit stay (oxandrolone 17.1 +/- 7.8, placebo 15.5 +/- 9.7 days), and frequency of pneumonia or sepsis (oxandrolone 48, placebo 43 episodes). CONCLUSION: Oxandrolone 20 mg/day does not have obvious benefit in nutritional and clinical outcomes during the first month after multiple trauma.

 

[BullGod]

The last study deosn't make sense - is it saying that 20 MG ED had little to no effect on nitrogen balance??

None of the studies demonstrate any negative effect on liver function during the OX therapy, which is odd due to it being 17-AA. I have used OX with no change in liver function. Does anyone understand why a 17-AA oral like OX exhibits such low / no liver toxicity??

 

[Juice Authority]

Oxandrolone does not aromatize or convert to DHT, and has a longer half life than Dianabol - 8 hours vs. 4 hours. Thus, a moderate dose taken in the morning is largely out of the system by night, yet supplies reasonable levels of androgen during the day and early evening.

Oxandrolone shares the liver toxicity problems common to 17-alkylated steroids. At one time it was thought that it did not, but both clinical and practical experience with Oxandrin has shown that at doses of 40 mg/day and higher, liver toxicity is indeed an issue with prolonged use.

 

[buffdoc]

The last study deosn't make sense - is it saying that 20 MG ED had little to no effect on nitrogen balance??

None of the studies demonstrate any negative effect on liver function during the OX therapy, which is odd due to it being 17-AA. I have used OX with no change in liver function. Does anyone understand why a 17-AA oral like OX exhibits such low / no liver toxicity??

Remember, these are multiple trauma patients: extremely ill and immensely catabolic. When treating these patients, IV amino acids and everything else we did was usually not enough to keep them in positive nitrogen balance.
20mg/day of Ox may not have been near enough.

 

[buffdoc]

Juice,
Hey, thanks for the three abstracts; interesting and thought-provoking.
Just remember, these are abstracts, and just sum up. There's a lot in the full articles that's not reflected in the abstracts. That's where the answers to Huck's questions, and others, are found.
But the part below: I know I've seen that as part of some of these "profiles" that make the rounds on the boards. Is that really current info from the literature?



"Oxandrolone does not aromatize or convert to DHT, and has a longer half life than Dianabol - 8 hours vs. 4 hours. Thus, a moderate dose taken in the morning is largely out of the system by night, yet supplies reasonable levels of androgen during the day and early evening.
Oxandrolone shares the liver toxicity problems common to 17-alkylated steroids. At one time it was thought that it did not, but both clinical and practical experience with Oxandrin has shown that at doses of 40 mg/day and higher, liver toxicity is indeed an issue with prolonged use."

 

[Juice Authority]

Yeah, I got that from a recent drug profile on Oxandrolone. I'm by no means an expert on the matter and should have prefaced that statement by indicating so..Here's the link..

http://www.mesomorphosis.com/steroid-profiles/oxandrolone.htm