Steroids

A former Philadelphia police detective on Tuesday admitted running a ring that imported steroids and human growth hormone from overseas distributors and sold them to users around the city. Keith Gidelson, 36, got the drugs from connections in Europe and China, then resold them out of his Northeast Philadelphia home, in fitness clubs, and at other locations. Authorities said they weren't sure when his ring started, but estimated that Gidelson sold more than 10,000 injections and pills before getting caught in 2011.

CHICAGO - Millions of people get steroid shots in their backs to relieve pain. Now they are probably wondering if it's safe. In 23 states, hundreds, possibly thousands, of back-pain patients are being warned to watch for symptoms of meningitis because of a custom-mixed steroid solution that may have been contaminated with a fungus. Five people have died and more than 40 others have fallen ill. Health officials on Friday identified 75 clinics across the country that received steroid shots for back pain now linked to the illnesses.

Question: With all the recent attention paid to athletes over illegal steroid drug use, I've been wondering what harm these drugs actually do. Can you explain? Answer: There are a number of performance-enhancing drugs with different effects and safety concerns. The most common performance-enhancing drugs are derivatives of testosterone, such as androstenediol, DHEA, hCG (the same hormone used to detect pregnancy), THG, oxandrolone and stanozolol. They are well-known to increase muscle bulk and strength.

Chinese swimmer Ye Shiwen, 16, had barely dried off from a pair of record-breaking performances in the London Olympics before facing the drip, drip, drip of suspicion that she must be doping. The aspersions are no surprise, given the ever-growing ranks of elite athletes caught in doping scandals. The surprising thing, at least to modern sensibilities, is that for a very long time, the use of performance-enhancing drugs, even toxic ones, was perfectly acceptable. Thomas Hicks won the 1904 Olympic marathon during a stifling St. Louis heat wave by fortifying himself with brandy and strychnine, also known as rat poison.

Question: I used to get cold sores about two to three times a year. They start with tingling, itching, and burning, and then they scab over. With the last one I had, I took action: I squeezed out the fluid and applied Vicks VapoRub. I haven't had another one since. What do you think of that? Answer: I think that it's a bad idea to pop those tiny clusters of cold sore blisters. They're packed full of viral particles of the herpes variety. And that makes the fluid very, very infectious.

The latest flare-up in which a Hall of Famer called out a possible future Hall of Famer over performance-enhancing drugs involves a couple of guys in pinstripes. In an interview with Sports Illustrated, former Yankees great Reggie Jackson called Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez's numbers tainted and hinted that the slugger does not belong in the Hall. "I think there are real questions about his numbers," Jackson said. "As much as I like him, what he admitted about his usage does cloud some of his records.

By Patrick Dorton The trial of baseball legend Roger Clemens is over, and the jury has found him not guilty on all counts. There will, however, be no convincing sportswriters of his innocence. Angry at being duped by star players, these self-appointed protectors of America's pastime turned their fury on Clemens when he refused to apologize for a sin he denied committing. Congress got swept up in the outrage, forcing him to testify before cameras and referring him to the Justice Department when he did not say what lawmakers wanted to hear.

Baseball's fabulous era of flagrant steroids abuse, which was accompanied during its heyday with loud cracks of the bat and perhaps a little extra pop in the catcher's mitt, came to a much quieter end Monday in a federal courtroom in Washington. As demonstrated by Freddy Galvis, who was busted for having a trace amount of a banned steroid metabolite in his system, there is still cheating going on, but the Wild West days are over. Whether Galvis is red-handed guilty or the unwitting victim of a juiced supplement doesn't matter.

WASHINGTON - Former major-leaguer David Segui said he was told as far back as 2001 that Roger Clemens' strength coach had kept evidence against the seven-time Cy Young Award winner. Segui testified Thursday about a telephone conversion he had with Brian McNamee 11 years ago. Segui said McNamee "mentioned that he had kept darts to get his wife off his back. " The federal jury hearing the Clemens perjury trial will have to assume that "darts" means "needles. " Segui wasn't allowed by the court to make that connection on the stand.