Usefulness of Echocardiography in Preparticipation Screening of Competitive Athletes

Technically Adequate Images for Preparticipation Screening Echocardiography Can Be Obtained by Novices After a Single Day of Training

“…The role of echocardiography in preparticipation screening has been extensively debated in the literature . Preparticipation echocardiography has been shown to detect cardiac abnormalities that are not readily detectable through screening using the history, physical examination, and ECG . These abnormalities include valvular abnormalities, anomalous coronary arteries, and abnormal aortic root dilatation .…”

“…Various screening echocardiographic protocols have been studied to provide greater access to athletes . These protocols were primarily limited echocardiographic studies focusing on views most likely to detect disease and were performed by experienced sonographers or cardiologists.…”

“…[4][5][6] Preparticipation echocardiography has been shown to detect cardiac abnormalities that are not readily detectable through screening using the history, physical examination, and ECG. [4][5][6] These abnormalities include valvular abnormalities, anomalous coronary arteries, and abnormal aortic root dilatation. [4][5][6] However, the cost of echocardiography and the availability of the expertise to perform it have been cited as major limitations to its use.…”

Kardiovaskuläre Vorsorge im Breitensport, ambitionierten Freizeitsport und Wettkampfsport über das 35. Lebensjahr hinaus

“…Bisherige offizielle Empfehlungen [10,45] unterliegen einem Wandel [16,17,25,33,35]. Sie müssten sich an den Empfehlungen für die Patienten mit koronarer Herzerkrankung orientieren [49], aber auch nach den laufenden Erkenntnissen richten [16,55] …”

Can Left Ventricular Noncompaction Be Acquired, and Can It Disappear?

“…[4][5][6] Later, during large-population echocardiographic screenings (in studies of sudden cardiac death in the young), LVNC's prevalence ranged from 0 to 0.1%. 7,8 More recently, investigators have used CMR-a method more accurate than echocardiography for detecting LVNC 9 -and found a much higher prevalence of LVNC in large general populations. 2,3 The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, 2 an epidemiologic multiyear project involving adults, included a study of LVNC in 1,000 individuals; the investigators reported a 6% prevalence of LVNC (using the criterion of "more than one myocardial segment involved").…”