OBJECTIVES: This study sought to investigate the effect of different types of exercise on left ventricular (LV) geometry in a large group of female and male athletes. BACKGROUND: Studies assessing cardiac adaptation in female and male athletes indicate that female athletes reveal smaller increases in LV wall thickness and cavity size compared with male athletes. However, data on sex-specific changes in LV geometry in athletes are scarce. METHODS: A total of 1,083 healthy, elite, white athletes (41% female; mean age 21.8 ± 5.7 years) assessed with electrocardiogram and echocardiogram were considered. LV geometry was classified into 4 groups according to relative wall thickness (RWT) and left ventricular mass (LVM) as per European and American Society of Echocardiography guidelines: normal (normal LVM/normal RWT), concentric hypertrophy (increased LVM/increased RWT), eccentric hypertrophy (increased LVM/normal RWT), and concentric remodeling (normal LVM/increased RWT). RESULTS: Athletes were engaged in 40 different sporting disciplines with similar participation rates with respect to the type of exercise between females and males. Females exhibited lower LVM (83 ± 17 g/m2 vs. 101 ± 21 g/m2; p < 0.001) and RWT (0.35 ± 0.05 vs. 0.36 ± 0.05; p < 0.001) compared with male athletes. Females also demonstrated lower absolute LV dimensions (49 ± 4 mm vs. 54 ± 5 mm; p < 0.001) but following correction for body surface area, the indexed LV dimensions were greater in females (28.6 ± 2.7 mm/m2 vs. 27.2 ± 2.7 mm/m2; p < 0.001). Most athletes showed normal LV geometry. A greater proportion of females competing in dynamic sport exhibited eccentric hypertrophy compared with males (22% vs. 14%; p < 0.001). In this subgroup only 4% of females compared with 15% of males demonstrated concentric hypertrophy/remodeling (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Highly trained athletes generally show normal LV geometry; however, female athletes participating in dynamic sport often exhibit eccentric hypertrophy. Although concentric remodeling or hypertrophy in male athletes engaged in dynamic sport is relatively common, it is rare in female athletes and may be a marker of disease in a symptomatic athlete.
OBJECTIVES: This study sought to investigate the effect of different types of exercise on left ventricular (LV) geometry in a large group of female and male athletes. BACKGROUND: Studies assessing cardiac adaptation in female and male athletes indicate that female athletes reveal smaller increases in LV wall thickness and cavity size compared with male athletes. However, data on sex-specific changes in LV geometry in athletes are scarce. METHODS: A total of 1,083 healthy, elite, white athletes (41% female; mean age 21.8 ± 5.7 years) assessed with electrocardiogram and echocardiogram were considered. LV geometry was classified into 4 groups according to relative wall thickness (RWT) and left ventricular mass (LVM) as per European and American Society of Echocardiography guidelines: normal (normal LVM/normal RWT), concentric hypertrophy (increased LVM/increased RWT), eccentric hypertrophy (increased LVM/normal RWT), and concentric remodeling (normal LVM/increased RWT). RESULTS: Athletes were engaged in 40 different sporting disciplines with similar participation rates with respect to the type of exercise between females and males. Females exhibited lower LVM (83 ± 17 g/m2 vs. 101 ± 21 g/m2; p < 0.001) and RWT (0.35 ± 0.05 vs. 0.36 ± 0.05; p < 0.001) compared with male athletes. Females also demonstrated lower absolute LV dimensions (49 ± 4 mm vs. 54 ± 5 mm; p < 0.001) but following correction for body surface area, the indexed LV dimensions were greater in females (28.6 ± 2.7 mm/m2 vs. 27.2 ± 2.7 mm/m2; p < 0.001). Most athletes showed normal LV geometry. A greater proportion of females competing in dynamic sport exhibited eccentric hypertrophy compared with males (22% vs. 14%; p < 0.001). In this subgroup only 4% of females compared with 15% of males demonstrated concentric hypertrophy/remodeling (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Highly trained athletes generally show normal LV geometry; however, female athletes participating in dynamic sport often exhibit eccentric hypertrophy. Although concentric remodeling or hypertrophy in male athletes engaged in dynamic sport is relatively common, it is rare in female athletes and may be a marker of disease in a symptomatic athlete.
Authors: Nabil Ghorayeb; Ricardo Stein; Daniel Jogaib Daher; Anderson Donelli da Silveira; Luiz Eduardo Fonteles Ritt; Daniel Fernando Pellegrino Dos Santos; Ana Paula Rennó Sierra; Artur Haddad Herdy; Claúdio Gil Soares de Araújo; Cléa Simone Sabino de Souza Colombo; Daniel Arkader Kopiler; Filipe Ferrari Ribeiro de Lacerda; José Kawazoe Lazzoli; Luciana Diniz Nagem Janot de Matos; Marcelo Bichels Leitão; Ricardo Contesini Francisco; Rodrigo Otávio Bougleux Alô; Sérgio Timerman; Tales de Carvalho; Thiago Ghorayeb Garcia Journal: Arq Bras Cardiol Date: 2019-03 Impact factor: 2.000
Authors: Wibke Reinhard; Teresa Trenkwalder; Bernhard Haller; Christine Meindl; Julia Schoenfeld; Bernhard M Kaess; Christian Hengstenberg; Heribert Schunkert; Axel Pressler; Martin Halle; Johannes Scherr Journal: Ann Noninvasive Electrocardiol Date: 2018-11-14 Impact factor: 1.468
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Authors: Sofia Shames; Natalie A Bello; Allan Schwartz; Shunichi Homma; Nidhi Patel; Juan Garza; Jonathan H Kim; Marci Goolsby; John P DiFiori; David J Engel Journal: JAMA Cardiol Date: 2020-09-01 Impact factor: 14.676
Authors: Lukas D Trachsel; Christoph P Ryffel; Stefano De Marchi; Christian Seiler; Nicolas Brugger; Prisca Eser; Matthias Wilhelm Journal: PLoS One Date: 2018-02-20 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: David Oxborough; Daniel Augustine; Sabiha Gati; Keith George; Allan Harkness; Thomas Mathew; Michael Papadakis; Liam Ring; Shaun Robinson; Julie Sandoval; Rizwan Sarwar; Sanjay Sharma; Vishal Sharma; Nabeel Sheikh; John Somauroo; Martin Stout; James Willis; Abbas Zaidi Journal: Echo Res Pract Date: 2018-03