What is Furosemide? Mariners' Robinson Cano suspended

by Felix Pantaleón

Seattle Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano was suspended Tuesday for 80 games for using Furosemide, a banned substance.

Seattle Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano, a former Yankees All-Star, was suspended Tuesday for 80 games for using Furosemide, a banned substance.

What is Furosemide?

It’s a pill that keeps your body from absorbing too much salt, allowing the salt to be passed through urine.

Furosemide his also used to treat fluid retention (edema) in people with congestive heart failure, liver disease, or a kidney disorder such as nephrotic syndrome.

Furosemide is also used to treat high blood pressure.

The drug is on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned drugs because it’s allegedly used to help mask the use of other drugs, such as steroids.

IMPORTANT ON CANO: players are NOT automatically suspended for using diuretics. The suspension means MLB was able to prove he was using it to mask a drug. Cano tested positive before the season, appealed and dropped the appeal. https://t.co/3l47Mkya46
— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) May 15, 2018

The drug, known commonly as Lasix or Salix, is often administered to horses for when they race to keep them from excessive bleeding. The drug is widely used in the United States for horses but it’s still banned in other countries.

Side effects in humans include dizziness, dehydration, headaches and blurred vision among others.

Here is Cano’s statement: