Patient Information > Glossary

Anabolic steroid: A synthetic derivative of testosterone that promotes tissue building and nitrogen-retaining processes.

Anemia: Any condition in which there are not enough oxygen-carrying red blood cells or less than normal hemoglobin in 100 mL of blood, causing excessive fatigue, loss of energy, exercise intolerance, and other symptoms. It is manifested by pallor of the skin, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, soft systolic murmurs, lethargy, and fatigue.

Bone marrow: A highly cellular hematopoietic connective tissue filling the medullary cavities and spongy epiphyses of bones that becomes predominantly fatty with age–especially in the long bones. The bone marrow is responsible for making red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. It has been shown that androgens stimulate protein synthesis in the bone marrow.

Chronic illness: A long-term medical condition. The U.S. National Center for Health Statistics defines a chronic condition as one with a duration of three months or longer.

Erythropoietin: A hormone made by the kidney that stimulates the bone marrow to make red blood cells. Oxymetholone enhances the production and urinary excretion of erythropoietin in patients with anemias due to bone marrow failure and often stimulates erythropoiesis in anemias due to deficient red blood cell production.

Hemoglobin: An iron-containing protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen to the cells from the lungs and carries carbon dioxide away from the cells and to the lungs.

Nitrogen balance: The relationship between the nitrogen taken into the body, usually as food, and the amount of nitrogen excreted from the body in urine and feces. A negative nitrogen balance means that parts of the body, such as muscles, are breaking down faster than they are replaced. Anabolic steroids are associated with improved nitrogen balance, provided there is adequate intake of calories and protein.

Testosterone: The most potent, naturally occurring androgen formed by the testes, ovary, and adrenal cortex, also referred to as the male sex hormone.