Nandrolone decanoate
Anabolic steroidsAlso known as Deca-Durabolin, Deca, 19-nortestosterone decanoate
A long-acting nandrolone ester, used clinically for anaemia and wasting.
How it works
Nandrolone differs from testosterone by a single missing carbon, which makes it a weaker androgen at the skin and prostate while remaining strongly anabolic in muscle. It does not aromatise to oestradiol but is progestogenic, which is a different route to the same gynecomastia risk.
In the body
Shape of a single dose, modelled as one compartment with first-order absorption. The peak is normalised to 100% because bioavailability and volume of distribution are not published for most of these compounds.
6 days, being the half-life of release from the intramuscular depot. Once freed, nandrolone itself is cleared with a half-life of about 4.3 hours, so the depot is entirely what governs the curve.
Doses
Clinical dosing for anaemia of renal insufficiency and for wasting.
Common non-medical range. No trial supports it, and progestogenic effects and sexual dysfunction both scale with the dose.
Vial sizes
Side effects
- Sexual dysfunction, common and able to persist, the effect the compound is best known for
- Progestogen-driven gynecomastia, by a different mechanism than oestrogen
- Marked and prolonged suppression; recovery is slower than from testosterone
- Raised haematocrit and blood pressure
- Detectable in anti-doping tests for many months
- Monitor: Haematocrit, androgens raise red cell mass, and the rise is dose-dependent
- Monitor: Blood pressure
- Monitor: Lipids, especially a fall in HDL
- Monitor: Total and free testosterone, LH and FSH
- Monitor: Oestradiol, for the aromatising compounds
- Monitor: prolactin, given the progestogenic activity
Cautions
- Prostate or breast cancer
- Trying to conceive
- Pregnancy
- Any competitive athlete subject to testing, the detection window is exceptionally long
Status
Prescription-only, Schedule III in the United States. Banned in sport at all times.
Sources
Reference information for personal record-keeping. Not medical advice, and not a recommendation to use any of these compounds.