591 MEP177 – The essential and optimal analgesic and anti-inflammatory medicines for athletes at the Olympic Games

AbstractThis research employed both qualitative and quantitative approaches to review the medication usage of athletes competing at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games and Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. The study aimed to inform the optimal selection of medicines to be available for the treatment of pain and inflammation in athletes at the venues and villages of all future Olympic Games, while ensuring alignment with team physician prescribing preferences and anticipated team stock usage.The study design used mixed methods, including a prospective cross-sectional and retrospective review of all medication declarations on doping control forms from 6155 athletes representing every Summer and Winter Olympic sport, a survey of 382 team physicians attending the Games, and review of medicine importation declarations by 156 National Olympic Committee teams. Through this study, a systematic, reproducible, and quantitative approach was developed which can be used to continually determine the optimum and essential set of medicines to be available for the treatment of pain and inflammation for athletes at the Olympic Games.The research led to a revised set of medications to be listed in the official Olympic & Paralympic Model Formulary that can better serve the medical needs of athletes during these Games, and led to a key finding of the use of drugs with harmful risks to athlete heath. The revised medicines formulary will result in safer athlete care, and a more optimised formulary for the treatment of pain and inflammation due to sports related conditions in athletes.