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Weight loss, muscle wasting, and disability are common in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This trial evaluated whether nutritional supplementation and anabolic steroids would benefit patients with moderate to severe, but stable, COPD. Half of the 217 patients were "depleted" in terms of weight and the degree of muscle wasting -- with less than 90 percent of ideal weight or a fat-free mass less than two- thirds of ideal weight. All patients exercised daily and were randomized to placebo, placebo plus nutritional supplementation, or nandrolone decanoate plus nutrition. The nandrolone decanoate dosage was 50 mg for men and 25 mg for women, given intramuscularly on days 1, 15, 29, and 43. Nutritional supplementation …