Problems with Doping in Scientific Articles?

Dear Editors

The first author of an article on Tour de France competitors which recently appeared in the International Journal of Sports Medicine [6] has published at least 3 additional papers on cyclists (mostly the same group) after revealing doping with erythropoietin or blood in this sports discipline in spring 2007 [5], [7], [8]. It has become clear that at least since 1996 these procedures were frequently applied. Can we be sure that the results in the above-mentioned papers are not falsified by such manipulations? Nothing is said in these articles on doping except one [5] where “all included individuals denied the intake of drugs that influence hematopoiesis”. This has to be doubted because of the known circumstances and the results. Although the mean hemoglobin mass [5] was not exorbitantly high (14.8 ± 1.9 SD g/kg), the expected range for the upper half of the values is from 14.8 to18.6 g/kg, mean + 2 standard deviations). In a group of cyclists with similar peak oxygen uptake (64 ml/min · kg), Robinson et al. [3] have measured only 13.4 ± 1.1 g/kg.

Astonishingly, while most of the authors of Vogt's papers are acknowledged scientists, two of them have admitted that they contributed to erythropoietin application in the cycling teams they cared for (e.g., [4]). There is no statement in the published manuscripts that these authors excluded doping manipulations in the subjects of the present investigations.

We write this letter because we are concerned about two problems:

There is a great probability that in this and the related papers the examined athletes are involved in doping-related procedures. After some years the close relation of the test subjects to the doping scene might have been forgotten and the possible impact on the data is no more known. But searching for the articles in data thesauri will at least present the criticism in a letter to the editor. Principally, it is of scientific interest to study possible doping effects but this must be done in a controlled and ethically correct form. Should authors who have admitted involvement in doping procedures be allowed to be authors in scientific journals? We believe that the answer is clear.

Possibly these problems have not been seen by reviewers and editors since the articles in the Int J Sports Med were accepted before the uncovering in May 2007. We propose to insert a strict exclusion rule for authors involved in doping-offenses into the editorial guidelines as has been done, for example, in the German Journal of Sports Medicine [2] since 1999. We feel that the scientific community in sports medicine cannot afford “laissez faire” when dealing with doping [1].

Dieter Böning, Jürgen M. Steinacker

References

• 1 Bette K H. Doping in elite sports.  Dtsch Z Sportmed. 2008;  59 5-11
• 2 Editorial Policies.  Dtsch Z Sportmed. 2007;  http://www.zeitschrift-sportmedizin.de/editorial%20policies%20DZSM.pdf
• 3 Robinson Y, Cristancho E, Böning D. Erythrocyte aspartate aminotransferase activity as a possible indirect marker for stimulated erythropoiesis in male and female athletes.  Lab Hematol. 2007;  13 49-55
• 4 Spiegel Online International Systematic doping in Telekom Team. http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,484515,00.html May.23.2007
• 5 Vogt S, Altehoefer C, Bueltermann D, Pottgiesser T, Prettin S, Schmid A, Roecker K, Schmidt W, Heinicke K, Heinrich L. Magnetic resonance imaging of the lumbar spine and blood volume in professional cyclists.  Eur J Appl Physiol. 2008;  102 411-416
• 6 Vogt S, Roecker K, Schumacher Y O, Pottgiesser T, Dickhuth H H, Schmid A, Heinrich L. Cadence-power-relationship during decisive mountain ascents at the Tour de France.  Int J Sports Med. 2008;  29 244-250
• 7 Vogt S, Schumacher Y O, Blum A, Roecker K, Dickhuth H H, Schmid A, Heinrich L. Cycling power output produced during flat and mountain stages in the Giro d'Italia: a case study.  J Sports Sci. 2007;  25 1299-1305
• 8 Vogt S, Schumacher Y O, Roecker K, Dickhuth H H, Schoberer U, Schmid A, Heinrich L. Power output during the Tour de France.  Int J Sports Med. 2007;  28 756-761