Why the study?
Does athletic conditioning alter intrinsic cardiac rate or autonomic tone compared to nonathletes?
Population
18 subjects (10 nonathletes and 8 world-class oarsmen)
Comparison
Dual pharmacological blockade with propranolol… vs Nonathletes
Design
Cross-sectional
Authors
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Supports reduced intrinsic rate over parasympathetic dominance for athlete bradycardia; hypothesis-generating pending longitudinal studies.
Does athletic conditioning alter intrinsic cardiac rate or autonomic tone compared to nonathletes?
The lower resting heart rate observed in highly trained athletes is driven by a reduction in intrinsic cardiac rate rather than an increase in parasympathetic tone.
Katona et al. (1982) studied this question.