Long-Term Clinical Consequences of Intense, Uninterrupted Endurance Training in Olympic Athletes

Abstract

In young Olympic athletes, extreme and uninterrupted endurance training over long periods of time (up to 17 years) was not associated with deterioration in LV function, significant changes in LV morphology, or occurrence of cardiovascular symptoms or events.

Response to the Letters Regarding Article, “Can Intensive Exercise Harm the Heart? The Benefits of Competitive Endurance Training for Cardiovascular Structure and Function”

“…2 Clearly, extraordinary exercise efforts can cause fatigue of cardiac muscle in athletes and nonathletes alike. However, it is also clear that continued training at these levels, sufficient to sustain multiple Olympic competitions over decades, as shown by Pelliccia et al 3 and cited in my article, 1 does not lead to deterioration of cardiac structure or function.…”

Athlete's Heart and Cardiovascular Care of the Athlete

“…Importantly, a recent study of Olympic-caliber Italian athletes (nϭ114) demonstrated no deterioration in left ventricular (LV) function or occurrence of cardiovascular events over an extended period (8.6Ϯ3 years) of intense training. 18 Although the debate is ongoing 19 and more prospective, long-term studies are needed, the modern view of the athlete's heart implicates adaptive physiology, not preclinical disease.…”

The relationship between exercise and the healthy heart: trouble in paradise?

“…This is at least ten-times higher than expected in age-matched controls [5]. Others have not found this negative consequence of training for the heart among younger athletes [3,7]. It is suggested that exercise-induced atrial fibrillation may be an even greater problem in the future, because more and more middle-aged and older men (and to a lesser degree women) are participating in long-lasting endurance competitions and are practicing endurance training for many hours per week for decades.…”

“…Until recently, mostly positive consequences of physical training for the heart have been described, even though it is known that short-term risk of sudden coronary events is increased during vigorous exercise [1,2]. In recent years possible negative cardiac effects of long-lasting endurance competitions and long-term endurance training have been described among participants in triathlon, bicycling, marathon, 24-h run and orienteering [3,4]. Most of the studies have evaluated the effects of extreme endurance events on ventricular function and rhythm.…”