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Thought this was of some interest. I guess the only way we are going to see any applicable research done with supraphysiological doses of steroids will probably be in HIV positive men:
Androgen therapy improves muscle mass and strength but not muscle quality: results from two studies
E. Todd Schroeder,1,3 Michael Terk,2,3 and Fred R. Sattler1,3
1Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, and 2Department of Radiology, Keck School of Medicine, and 3Department of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90033
Submitted 22 January 2003 ; accepted in final form 3 March 2003
The relationship of strength to muscle area was used to assess change in muscle quality after anabolic interventions. Study 1: asymptomatic human immunodeficiency virus-positive men (39 ± 9 yr) were randomized to nandrolone (600 mg/wk) ± resistance training (RT). Study 2: older healthy men (72 ± 5 yr) were randomized to oxandrolone (20 mg/day) or placebo. Maximum voluntary strength was determined by the 1-repetition maximum (1-RM) method for leg press, flexion and extension, and cross-sectional area of leg muscles by MRI. From study week 0 to study week 12, muscle quality was unchanged with nandrolone, oxandrolone, or oxandrolone placebo, respectively, for total thigh muscles (1.23 ± 0.012 vs. 1.27 ± 0.29 kg/cm2; 9.0 ± 1.1 vs. 8.9 ± 1.2 N/cm2; 8.9 ± 1.2 vs. 8.9 ± 1.9 N/cm2) and hamstrings (0.41 ± 0.08 vs. 0.43 ± 0.07 kg/cm2; 0.90 ± 0.14 vs. 0.95 ± 0.016 N/cm2; 0.94 ± 0.23 vs. 0.93 ± 0.21 N/cm2). Lower-extremity 1-RM strength increased several times greater with RT+nandrolone (51–63% increases) than with nandrolone alone (4.7–16%), despite similar increases in muscle area; therefore, muscle quality increased from 1.13 ± 0.17 to 1.51 ± 0.18 kg/cm2 (+36 ± 19%; P < 0.001) for total thigh muscle, 0.37 ± 0.10 to 0.53 ± 0.08 kg/cm2 (+49 ± 39%; P < 0.001) for hamstrings, and 0.73 ± 0.19 to 1.07 ± 0.16 kg/cm2 (+55 ± 36%; P < 0.001) for quadriceps. Thus androgen therapy alone did not improve muscle quality, but the addition of RT to nandrolone produced substantive improvements.
Androgen therapy improves muscle mass and strength but not muscle quality: results from two studies
E. Todd Schroeder,1,3 Michael Terk,2,3 and Fred R. Sattler1,3
1Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, and 2Department of Radiology, Keck School of Medicine, and 3Department of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90033
Submitted 22 January 2003 ; accepted in final form 3 March 2003
The relationship of strength to muscle area was used to assess change in muscle quality after anabolic interventions. Study 1: asymptomatic human immunodeficiency virus-positive men (39 ± 9 yr) were randomized to nandrolone (600 mg/wk) ± resistance training (RT). Study 2: older healthy men (72 ± 5 yr) were randomized to oxandrolone (20 mg/day) or placebo. Maximum voluntary strength was determined by the 1-repetition maximum (1-RM) method for leg press, flexion and extension, and cross-sectional area of leg muscles by MRI. From study week 0 to study week 12, muscle quality was unchanged with nandrolone, oxandrolone, or oxandrolone placebo, respectively, for total thigh muscles (1.23 ± 0.012 vs. 1.27 ± 0.29 kg/cm2; 9.0 ± 1.1 vs. 8.9 ± 1.2 N/cm2; 8.9 ± 1.2 vs. 8.9 ± 1.9 N/cm2) and hamstrings (0.41 ± 0.08 vs. 0.43 ± 0.07 kg/cm2; 0.90 ± 0.14 vs. 0.95 ± 0.016 N/cm2; 0.94 ± 0.23 vs. 0.93 ± 0.21 N/cm2). Lower-extremity 1-RM strength increased several times greater with RT+nandrolone (51–63% increases) than with nandrolone alone (4.7–16%), despite similar increases in muscle area; therefore, muscle quality increased from 1.13 ± 0.17 to 1.51 ± 0.18 kg/cm2 (+36 ± 19%; P < 0.001) for total thigh muscle, 0.37 ± 0.10 to 0.53 ± 0.08 kg/cm2 (+49 ± 39%; P < 0.001) for hamstrings, and 0.73 ± 0.19 to 1.07 ± 0.16 kg/cm2 (+55 ± 36%; P < 0.001) for quadriceps. Thus androgen therapy alone did not improve muscle quality, but the addition of RT to nandrolone produced substantive improvements.
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