Doping in sports is defined as a violation of anti-doping rules aimed at ensuring fair and equitable competition, protecting athletes' health, and preserving the integrity of sports. Doping does not occur solely due to the intentional use of a prohibited substance or method but can also result from unintentional intake, often as a consequence of a lack of knowledge regarding the pharmacological composition of medications. Numerous prohibited substances are found in medicines that have been or are currently registered in the Republic of Slovenia, posing the risk of unintentional ingestion of these substances through medicinal use. In this context, there is a need to analyze the registered medicines in the Republic of Slovenia concerning their compliance with the Prohibited List of Substances and Methods (Prohibited List) issued by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Athletes who, for medical reasons, require medications containing substances listed on the Prohibited List must obtain a therapeutic use exemption (TUE). Failure to comply with these rules or ignorance thereof exposes athletes to the risk of violating anti-doping regulations, which can lead to sanctions, such as bans from competition, disqualification of achieved results, and financial penalties. Adequate education and awareness raising among athletes and healthcare professionals play a critical role in mitigating the risk of unintentional doping.
In this thesis, we analyzed the prevalence of prohibited active substances and medicines in the Republic of Slovenia. Data were obtained from the national drug register Centralna baza zdravil (CBZ) and organized in an exported XML file for further processing. The substances and medicines were classified according to the pharmacological groups defined in the Prohibited List, and further categorized using the Anatomical-Therapeutic-Chemical (ATC) classification. Special attention was given to analyzing the frequency of individual active substances in medicines, their distribution across pharmacological groups, and the identification of substances that pose the highest risk for unintentional doping. The results revealed that 7% of all active substances and 14% of all registered medicines in the CBZ contain substances prohibited in sports. Among pharmacological groups, the largest proportion of prohibited medicines was found in S5 – Diuretics and Masking Agents, which accounted for a quarter of all prohibited medicines. For each pharmacological group, we quantified the number of medicines containing the specific active substances listed on the Prohibited List. We identified certain prohibited active substances, such as hydrochlorothiazide, the most common prohibited substance, which stands out due to its high prevalence in medicines and represents a significant risk for unintentional doping. Furthermore, we outlined exemptions for the use of certain medications based on the rules defined in the Prohibited List. These findings provide crucial insights into the prevalence and categorization of prohibited active substances and medicines, emphasizing the importance of targeted awareness and educational efforts to prevent unintentional doping.
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