Dataset Information

Post-mortem investigation into a death involving doping agents: The case of a body builder.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

A young male was found dead on the bed of a hotel room. He was expected to take part in a bodybuilding competition the day after. During the site inspection, drugs of different types were found. The next day, an autopsy was performed. The evidence of cardiomegaly with organ congestion involving lung, liver, kidneys, adrenal glands, spleen and brain was confirmed by both the autoptic and the histopathological exam. However, the cause of death needed to be investigated.

Methods

A thorough toxicological investigation was undertaken by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) on samples of urine, blood and hair.

Results and discussion

Clenbuterol, a long-acting selective beta₂ agonist, was found in both blood (1 ng/ml) and urine (1 ng/ml), and evidence of its use was provided by the analysis of the 3-cm hair (25 pg/mg). The main metabolite of drostanolone (2 alpha-methyl-androsterone), an anabolic steroid, was found in the urine (202 ng/ml), where an increased ratio of testosterone/epitestosterone (T/E = 11) emerged. Due to the results of the hair analysis, a long-term use of various anabolic steroids was supposed. The integrated analysis of the results and the absence of other possible causes (such as trauma or cardiac conduction anomalies) led to the identification of the abuse of doping substances as the underlying cause of death.

Conclusion

Hair analysis has proven to be crucial in identifying drug misuse and the contributing cause of death.

SUBMITTER: Favretto D

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9804486 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Post-mortem investigation into a death involving doping agents: The case of a body builder.

Favretto Donata D Stocchero Giulia G Pertile Roberto R Stimamiglio Raffaella R Cirnelli Antonello A Galeazzi Maddalena M

Drug testing and analysis 20220814 10

<h4>Introduction</h4>A young male was found dead on the bed of a hotel room. He was expected to take part in a bodybuilding competition the day after. During the site inspection, drugs of different types were found. The next day, an autopsy was performed. The evidence of cardiomegaly with organ congestion involving lung, liver, kidneys, adrenal glands, spleen and brain was confirmed by both the autoptic and the histopathological exam. However, the cause of death needed to be investigated.<h4>Met ...[more]

PMID: 35964965

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Dataset Information

Post-mortem investigation into a death involving doping agents: The case of a body builder.

Introduction

Methods

Results and discussion

Conclusion

Publications

Post-mortem investigation into a death involving doping agents: The case of a body builder.

Similar Datasets

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