Does lifelong endurance exercise and subsequent detraining affect the prevalence of arrhythmias and cardiac remodeling in master athletes compared to non-athletic controls?
Master endurance athletes have a persistently higher prevalence of atrial fibrillation and non-sustained ventricular tachycardia compared to controls, even after detraining.
BACKGROUND: A greater prevalence of arrhythmias has been described in endurance athletes, but it remains unclear whether this risk persists after detraining. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of arrhythmias and their relationship with cardiac remodeling in lifelong and retired master endurance athletes compared to non-athletic controls. METHODS: ). Athletes with overt cardiomyopathies, channelopathies, pre-excitation, and/or myocardial infarction were excluded. RESULTS: (IQR: 25-38), p < 0.001) than controls, with no difference in atrial volumes and non-ischaemic scar between the athlete groups. CONCLUSION: Master endurance athletes have a higher prevalence of AF and NSVT than non-athletic controls. Whereas ventricular remodeling tends to reverse with detraining, the propensity to arrhythmias persists regardless of whether they are actively exercising or retired.
D’Ambrosio et al. (Tue,) studied this question.