New research from Massachusetts General Hospital shows that long-term anabolic steroid use could harm the heart and eventually cause coronary artery disease.

The long-term effects of using these drugs are just now emerging since they became widely used in the 1980s, according to the study, launched by Aaron Baggish, MD, the associate director of the cardiovascular performance program at Massachusetts General in Boston.

The observational study included 140 male weightlifters, 86 of whom used anabolic steroids and 54 who did not. Of the users, 58 were using the drugs and 28 were not during evaluations. Those who used the steroids showed higher body and fat-free mass indexes, which is consistent with the effects of anabolic steroids. The findings were published in Circulation.

To test how the steroids affected the onset of coronary artery disease, Baggish’s team used 2D ultrasound imaging. Results showed that the left ventricle was significantly weaker during contraction in patients who took anabolic steroids compared to those who didn’t. Diastolic function was also impaired for steroid users.

“Compared to non-users, anabolic steroid users displayed both higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure as well as a higher prevalence of levels of bad cholesterol in their blood,” Baggish said in a statement.