Sex‐specific characteristics of cardiac function, geometry, and mass in young adult elite athletes

Abstract

Purpose: To study young adult elite athletes with age-and sex-matched sedentary controls to assess sex-specific differences for left ventricular (LV) and right ventricular (RV) volumes and mass as well as for LV contraction and relaxation. Materials and Methods:A total of 23 male athletes (mean age 25 Ϯ 4 years, training 22 Ϯ 7 hours/week in rowing, swimming, or triathlon) and 20 female athletes (mean age 24 Ϯ 4 years, training 19 Ϯ 5 hours/week in rowing, swimming, or triathlon) and age-and sex-matched sedentary controls (21 male/17 female) underwent cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging (1.5 Tesla). Cardiac phase contrast imaging using a black-blood k-space segmented gradient echo sequence was used for analysis of cardiac contraction and relaxation and steady-state freeprecession cine images were acquired for determination of cardiac volumes and mass.Results: Male and female athletes showed similar increases in LV and RV volume and mass indices when compared to controls (ranging between 15% and 42%). No sexspecific differences in training effect on LV and RV volumes, mass indices, and ejection fractions, as well as LV to RV ratios of these volume and mass indices (parameters of balanced LV and RV dilatation and hypertrophy) were observed (all P for interaction Ͼ0.05). Similarly, no sex-specific differences in training effect on cardiac contraction and relaxation were found (all P for interaction Ͼ0.05). Conclusion:Young adult elite athletes do not show sexspecific adaptive structural and functional changes to exercise training in accordance with the benign nature of the hypertrophy associated with athlete's heart.

Myocardial adaptation and efficiency in response to intensive physical training in elite speedskaters

“…There appears to be no sex-specific adaptive structural and functional changes to exercise training amongst these young adult athletes, consistent with findings from other studies [29].…”

Sex differences in physiological cardiac hypertrophy are associated with exercise-mediated changes in energy substrate availability

“…LVM was significantly increased in male endurance athletes by 36 Ϯ 14% compared with untrained control subjects (33). Sex differences in LVM were investigated with MRI in young adult elite athletes and age-and sex-matched sedentary controls (28). In contrast to our results, female and male athletes exhibited similar increases in LVM and LVM indexes compared with their sedentary controls (28).…”

“…Sex differences in LVM were investigated with MRI in young adult elite athletes and age-and sex-matched sedentary controls (28). In contrast to our results, female and male athletes exhibited similar increases in LVM and LVM indexes compared with their sedentary controls (28). However, despite a comparable training duration (hours/week and years at elite level) in female and male athletes, no detailed information about training intensity was provided (28).…”

Gender Differences in Ventricular Remodeling and Function in College Athletes, Insights from Lean Body Mass Scaling and Deformation Imaging

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] Part of the controversy may be related to the fact that only few studies took into account body composition when scaling cardiac dimensions. In this study, we sought to determine, in college athletes, whether sex-related differences in ventricular dimensions persisted after adjustment for lean body mass (LBM).…”