Key result
Universal ECG screening yields no significant cardiac findings in healthy pediatric athletes despite ~19% showing abnormalities.
Why the study?
The study was conducted to examine the incidence, type of electrocardiogram abnormalities, and associated risk factors in healthy paediatric athletes.
Does universal electrocardiogram screening identify significant cardiac findings in healthy paediatric athletes?
Does universal electrocardiogram screening identify significant cardiac findings in healthy paediatric athletes?
Universal ECG screening in healthy pediatric athletes yielded an 18.5% abnormality rate but no significant underlying cardiac findings, suggesting routine ECG screening in this population is not beneficial.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Avoid routine ECG screening in healthy paediatric athletes; reinforces prior evidence of frequent benign abnormalities without significant disease.
This study examined the incidence, type of electrocardiogram abnormalities, and associated risk factors in healthy paediatric athletes. A single-centre retrospective cohort study was conducted on a local male youth competitive soccer programme, ages 11–18. The primary outcome was the incidence of electrocardiogram abnormalities. The secondary outcomes were recurrence and the type of electrocardiogram abnormalities. Covariables were age, race, family history, and current medications. Statistical analysis program was used for analysis. There was a total of 368 electrocardiograms reviewed from 2021–2024, of which 68 (18.5%) had at least one abnormality. 182 unique athletes were screened. A higher proportion of multi-racial and African American athletes had electrocardiogram abnormalities ( p -value 0.02). In our sample of healthy paediatric athletes, electrocardiogram abnormality incidence was similar to that noted in other studies. There were no significant cardiac findings noted after further evaluation on any of the athletes with abnormal electrocardiogram findings. Our data support that universal electrocardiogram screening of healthy paediatric athletes is not beneficial.
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Ghosh et al. (2026) studied this question. Electrocardiogram abnormalities were found in 18.5% of healthy paediatric athletes, but none resulted in significant cardiac findings, suggesting universal screening is not beneficial.
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