Key result
ECG-based estimation of the anaerobic threshold (AT dT°) correlated highly significantly with established lactate thresholds by Dickhuth (r = 0.96) and Mader (r = 0.98) in professional and amateur athletes.
Why the study?
Assessing lactate or anaerobic thresholds helps control training intensities and performance, but ECG-based non-invasive estimation of anaerobic threshold via cardiac repolarization instability needed validation in professional and amateur team sports athletes.
Does ECG-based assessment of cardiac repolarization instability accurately estimate anaerobic threshold compared to lactate thresholds in team sports athletes?
Observational (n=65)
No
Does ECG-based assessment of cardiac repolarization instability accurately estimate anaerobic threshold compared to lactate thresholds in team sports athletes?
ECG-based assessment of cardiac repolarization instability provides a reliable, non-invasive method to estimate anaerobic threshold in athletes.
May enable non-invasive AT estimation in team athletes; leaves open prospective validation before clinical adoption.
Background Assessing lactate (LT) or anaerobic thresholds (AT) in athletes is an important tool to control training intensities and to estimate individual performance levels. Previously we demonstrated that ECG-based assessment of cardiac repolarization instability during exercise testing allows non-invasive estimation of AT in recreational athletes. Here, we validate this method in professional and amateur team sports athletes. Methods We included 65 team sports athletes (32 professionals and 33 amateur athletes; 51 men, 14 women, mean age 22.3 ± 5.2 years) undergoing a standardized incremental cycle exercise test. During exercise testing a high-resolution ECG (1000 Hz) was recorded in Frank-leads configuration and beat-to-beat vector changes of cardiac repolarization (dT°) were assessed by previously established technologies. Repolarization-based AT (AT dT° ) was estimated by its typical dT°-signal pattern. Additionally, LT was detected in accordance to methods established by Mader (LT Mader ) and Dickhuth (LT Dickhuth ). Results All athletes performed exercise testing until exhaustion with a mean maximum workload of 262.3 ± 60.8 W (241.8 ± 64.4 W for amateur athletes and 283.4 ± 49.5 W for professional athletes). Athletes showed AT dT° at 187.6 ± 44.4 W, LT Dickhuth at 181.1 ± 45.6 W and LT Mader at 184.3 ± 52.4 W. AT dT° correlated highly significantly with LT Dickhuth ( r = 0.96, p < 0.001) and LT Mader ( r = 0.98, p < 0.001) in the entire cohort of athletes as well as in the subgroups of professional and amateur athletes ( p < 0.001 for all). Conclusions AT dT° , defined by the maximal discordance between dT° and heart rate, can be assessed reliably and non-invasively via the use of a high-resolution ECG in professional and amateur athletes.
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Schüttler et al. (2021) conducted an observational in Healthy team sport athletes (n=65). ECG-based assessment of cardiac repolarization instability (AT dT°) vs. Lactate thresholds (LT Mader and LT Dickhuth) was evaluated on Correlation between AT dT° and lactate thresholds (LT Dickhuth and LT Mader) (r = 0.96 (LT Dickhuth) and r = 0.98 (LT Mader), p=<0.001). ECG-based estimation of the anaerobic threshold (AT dT°) correlated highly significantly with established lactate thresholds by Dickhuth (r = 0.96) and Mader (r = 0.98) in professional and amateur athletes.
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