The misuse of manipulated hormonal implants and steroids may be related to 257 cases of health complications and two deaths . This is what the survey carried out by medical societies reveals. Titled “Vigicom Hormones: Hormone Misuse Observatory “, the data demonstrate an alarming scenario about the risks associated with the inappropriate use of hormones, especially for aesthetic purposes.
THE Vigicom Hormones is a platform that seeks to quantify the adverse effects of the misuse of hormones, developed by the Brazilian Society of Endocrinology and Metabology (SBEM), the Brazilian Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics Associations (Febrasgo), the Brazilian Association for the Study of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome (ABESO) and the Bomba Tô Fora Program, in partnership with the Brazilian Medical Association
(AMB).
Through the tool, doctors can report the misuse of hormones, such as for aesthetic purposes and without ethical indications or scientific proof.
According to the survey, of the total number of reported cases, 45.9% are from patients using manipulated hormonal implants with the majority being women (63), with an average of 42.9 years. Others 34% were related to intramuscular hormones .
One of the most common types of hormonal implants manipulated for this purpose is the “beauty chip”, prescribed as a strategy for weight loss, menopause treatment, anti-aging, reducing body fat, increasing libido and muscle mass.
These implants can contain numerous substances, although they are usually composed of testosterone or gestrinone, a progestin with androgenic effects. Combinations containing estradiol, oxandrolone, metformin, oxytocin, other hormones and NADH are also produced.
Hormonal implants are not approved by the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) for commercial use and industrial production. Furthermore, they do not have adequate leaflets or information on pharmacokinetics, efficacy or safety.
“By law, the doctor can prescribe a different dose of a drug approved by Anvisa [para casos com indicação médica]. That’s where the compounding pharmacy comes in. This is legal”, explains Clayton Macedo, president of the Department of Exercise and Sports Endocrinology at the Brazilian Society of Endocrinology and Metabology (SBEM), to CNN .
However, the expert states that there are loopholes in the legislation that may allow the prescription of hormones manipulated in doses and with other components whose efficacy and safety have not yet been scientifically proven.
It is worth remembering that there is a single type of hormonal implant approved by Anvisa, Implanon, composed of etonogestrel and which acts as a contraceptive method.
Aesthetics is the main motivation for inappropriate use of hormones
The survey shows that the aesthetics is the main motivation for the inappropriate use of hormones and manipulated hormonal implants . Of the total cases analyzed, 45.9% reported using it for aesthetic purposes, such as losing weight or gaining muscle mass, followed by 37% who used it to combat tiredness, and 29.2% to treat symptoms of menopause or “andropause”. ”.
“Gestrinone, which is very common in manipulated hormonal implants, is usually sold with the promise of increasing muscle mass gain, flattening the belly and defining muscles”, explains Macedo. “It is also common to have oxandrolone in the implant [esteroide hormonal, derivado da testosterona] or even testosterone itself. In some cases, there is even the placement of sildenafil in these implants, which is a medicine for sexual impotence”, he explains.
“Some prescriptions may indicate doses and combine substances of which we do not know the effects, because there are no safety studies, neither on these doses nor on these combinations”, explains Macedo. “So, we want all of this to be regulated. No one is against a doctor prescribing hormones. But we will make the recommendation when there are studies that prove the effectiveness and safety of these substances”, he reiterates.
Hypertension, heart attack and stroke are among the serious complications
According to the study, among patients who used manipulated hormonal implants, 20.3% required hospitalization and 5.1% needed intensive care in the ICU (intensive care unit).
Among the compounds used related to health complications, gestrinone was the most common (49.2%), followed by testosterone derivatives (53.4%). The motivations for the use of hormones by these people who had adverse effects continued to be aesthetics (52%) and combating tiredness (46.6%), mainly.
The two deaths reported occurred due to acute myocardial infarction, after the use of intramuscular testosterone, and due to tachyarrhythmia and pulmonary thromboembolism.
“These data show that the inappropriate use of hormones can have extremely serious consequences, going far beyond the desired aesthetic results”, states an official statement from SBEM, sent to CNN .
Societies demand Anvisa to correct “loopholes” in legislation
The Vigicom Hormones report aims to reinforce regulations on the prescription and sale of manipulated hormonal implants. According to a statement, the data from the study “will be used to request more speed from Anvisa to correct loopholes in the legislation that allow industrial-scale production of manipulated hormonal implants, prohibiting products without approval and without data on pharmacokinetics, efficacy and safety from being marketed”.
“We are not against the use of hormones by patients who really need them. But it is prohibited by CRM [Conselho Regional de Medicina] the use of hormones for aesthetic and performance purposes, and the majority are being used for that”, reiterates Macedo.
The expert believes that, to correct the “loopholes” in the legislation, Anvisa must temporarily suspend the production and sale of hormonal implants that are not approved and whose effectiveness and safety have not yet been proven by scientific studies.
In August 2024, 32 medical specialty societies filed a regulatory proposal with Anvisa. Wanted by CNN the agency did not take a position on the matter at the time of publishing this report.
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This content was originally published in Heart attack, stroke and other conditions linked to the misuse of hormonal implants on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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