Physicians contacted by Reuters were surprised that tennis star Maria Sharapova took meldonium, a heart drug banned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
The ITF suspended Sharapova after she tested positive for the medication on Jan. 26, the day she lost to Serena Williams at the Australian Open. Sharapova admitted on March 7 that she began taking meldonium 10 years ago because she had irregular electrocardiogram results, a magnesium deficiency and a family history of diabetes, according to Reuters.
Meldonium is not approved by the FDA or the European Medicines Agency.
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Executive Editor
Tim Casey joined TriMed Media Group in 2015 as Executive Editor. For the previous four years, he worked as an editor and writer for HMP Communications, primarily focused on covering managed care issues and reporting from medical and health care conferences. He was also a staff reporter at the Sacramento Bee for more than four years covering professional, college and high school sports. He earned his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Notre Dame and his MBA degree from Georgetown University.