PMID- 38344525
OWN - NLM
STAT- PubMed-not-MEDLINE
LR  - 20240213
IS  - 2168-8184 (Print)
IS  - 2168-8184 (Electronic)
IS  - 2168-8184 (Linking)
VI  - 16
IP  - 1
DP  - 2024 Jan
TI  - Social Interest Data as a Proxy for Off-Label Performance-Enhancing Drug Use: 
      Implications and Clinical Considerations.
PG  - e52011
LID - 10.7759/cureus.52011 [doi]
LID - e52011
AB  - Performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) can be categorized into various classes based 
      on the physiological mechanism of the compound, with the most popular being 
      anabolic steroids, selective androgen receptor modulators, and growth hormones. 
      Ancillary compounds, such as selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) and 
      selective estrogen receptor degraders, are commonly utilized alongside a PED to 
      counterbalance any potential undesired side effects. With little clinically 
      relevant data to support the use of these ancillary compounds, medical education 
      and evidence-based approaches aimed at monitoring the potential adverse effects 
      of PED use are sparse.This study aims to identify emerging trends in the interest 
      of PEDs and related ancillary compounds, hypothesize the physiological effects of 
      the continued respective behavior, and propose a proxy for use by clinicians to 
      approximate off-label drug use and subsequently modify their practices 
      accordingly. Several significant trends were identified for non-FDA-regulated 
      compounds (i.e., selective androgen receptor modulators such as RAD-140) and 
      off-label indications for FDA-regulated drugs (i.e., SERMs such as tamoxifen). A 
      significant increase in interest regarding selective androgen receptor 
      modulators, mirrored by anecdotal reports in clinical settings and online forums, 
      is coupled with stagnant or decreasing interest in both post-cycle therapies and 
      anabolic steroids. Ultimately, we propose a call to action for utilizing social 
      data and/or prescription data as a proxy for clinicians to better understand 
      trends in these compounds and thus refine their treatment protocols in a 
      concordant manner.
CI  - Copyright (c) 2024, Holubeck et al.
FAU - Holubeck, Philip A
AU  - Holubeck PA
AD  - College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, USA.
FAU - Eksi, Andrew C
AU  - Eksi AC
AD  - College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, USA.
FAU - Gillett, Kyle
AU  - Gillett K
AD  - Department of Family Medicine, University of Kansas Health System, Olathe, USA.
FAU - O'Hara, James
AU  - O'Hara J
AD  - Department of Family Medicine, University of Kansas Health System, Olathe, USA.
FAU - McGoldrick, Daniel J
AU  - McGoldrick DJ
AD  - Department of Computer Science, California State University, Seaside, USA.
FAU - Brown, Demi R
AU  - Brown DR
AD  - School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, USA.
FAU - McCarthy, Alec D
AU  - McCarthy AD
AD  - Department of Surgery - Transplant, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, 
      USA.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
DEP - 20240110
PL  - United States
TA  - Cureus
JT  - Cureus
JID - 101596737
PMC - PMC10854362
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - anabolic androgenic steroid
OT  - anabolic steroid
OT  - exercise sciences
OT  - exogenous steroids
OT  - google trends healthcare
OT  - selective androgen receptor modulator
OT  - sports medicine
OT  -  drug abuse
COIS- The authors have declared financial relationships, which are detailed in the next 
      section.
EDAT- 2024/02/12 15:42
MHDA- 2024/02/12 15:43
PMCR- 2024/01/10
CRDT- 2024/02/12 04:24
PHST- 2024/01/10 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2024/02/12 15:43 [medline]
PHST- 2024/02/12 15:42 [pubmed]
PHST- 2024/02/12 04:24 [entrez]
PHST- 2024/01/10 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - 10.7759/cureus.52011 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - Cureus. 2024 Jan 10;16(1):e52011. doi: 10.7759/cureus.52011. eCollection 2024 
      Jan.