Sports and the Environment

Other Medical Problems
	Upper respiratory tract infections may (rarely) cause sudden cardiac death (arrhythmia or viral myocarditis); glandular fever may predispose to splenic rupture, myocarditis, or persistent fatigue; hepatitis (resume normal activities when asymptomatic), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (symptomatic treatment only) and HIV infection (normal social/sport contact okay but use condoms and limit number of sexual partners)
	Disabled Athletes To watch children with physical (brittle diabetes, epilepsy, amputees) and social/intellectual disabilities (mentally retarded, socially deprived) snow ski is to realise the capabilities of the human spirit. Disability (physical or mental) is no contra indication to sport participation (Fig 21).
	Drug Abuse Drug Abuse in sport, once widespread, is no longer tolerated with severe penalties for guilty athletes. The I.O.C. has set the guidelines for other sport bodies. The banned drugs fall into the categories of stimulants, narcotics, anabolic steroids, Beta blockers (in general), diuretics, masking agents, peptide hormones, ethanol, THC and phenobarbitol. Blood doping is illegal. Anabolic steroids increase muscle mass and strength but adversely affect the bone (enlarge), liver (failure or cancer), heart (cardiomegaly), testes (atrophy), skin (acne or hirsutism), kidney (failure) and personality (roid rages) (Fig. 22). H.G.H. enhances lean body mass but causes acromegaly, cardiomyopathy and heart disease. Amphetamines mask fatigue but may damage the CNS and heart. So not only are drugs dangerous but they contravene the spirit of athletic competition.