"Play Ball!" will soon be heard in major league baseball parks across the country. It may also signal renewed controversy over Major League Baseball's Mitchell Report on the use by professional athletes of such banned substances as anabolic steroids and human growth hormone (HGH).

Roberto Salvatori, M.D., associate professor in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine's division of endocrinology & metabolism, can discuss the differences, the legitimate and therapeutic uses and side effects of HGH and anabolic steroids and offer answers to the following questions:

• Can an athlete who uses anabolic steroids and/or HGH improve his athletic performance?
• What do most clinical studies suggest about HGH?
• Is it right to put a ballplayer who used HGH in the same category as one who used anabolic steroids?
• The other key difference is that while steroids cause many nasty side effects, what are the side effects of HGH and is it bad for you?
• If HGH doesn't help with athletic performance, why are athletes breaking league rules to get it?

SOURCE:
Roberto Salvatori, M.D., associate professor in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine's division of endocrinology & metabolism