The Union Cycliste International (UCI) has published the first results on the controls carried out during the first part of the 2019 season concerning the measurement of Tramadol in the professional cycling platoon.
The International Cycling Union (UCI) has prohibited of Tramadol in competition from 1 March 2019.
In this context, the UCI has requested the center of Research and Expertise in anti-Doping sciences (REDs) from the University of Lausanne to coordinate the project to develop and validate a detection method for Tramadol, as well as the operational implementation of controls in the field in support of the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation (CADF).
A reference method with "Dried Blood Spots" (DBS) using Hemaxis sampling kits (www.hemaxis.com) developed by the Swiss company DBS System was set up to collect a minimal amount of blood from the pulp of the riders' finger.
The collaboration with the Department of Analytical Sciences at the University of Geneva enabled the development and validation of the detection method that could then be applied for independent analyzes at the clinical pharmacology and toxicology laboratory of the Geneva University Hospitals.
The REDs have thus played a decisive role in setting up the appropriate procedures in compliance with anti-doping rules and then in monitoring and anonymizing the results.