ROMA (ITALPRESS) – The growing focus on preventing adverse events in high-performance sports leads diagnostics for images at the centre of medical-sport debate. During a moderate session by Professor Gianfranco Gualdi, dedicated to the role of cardiovascular methods in the evaluation of the athlete. During the meeting, key themes such as the importance of the guidelines in the cardiological evaluation of the Olympic athlete, the evolution of echocardiography, the origin and path anomalies of the coronary arteries, the role of coronary CT in master athletes and the contribution of magnetic cardio-resonance in risk stratification were discussed.
The session highlighted how today diagnostic integration is an essential step for a complete and personalized assessment of the athlete, especially in high-carriage disciplines. The echocardiography continues to constitute the first step of the evaluation for its immediacy and ability to provide basic morpho-functional information. The heart magnetic resonance, gold standard for morphological and functional definition, allows a more precise measurement of the size and biventricular function, adding the possibility of woven characterization
A crucial element today to distinguish physiological adaptation to training, typical of endurance sports, from the possible initial stages of cardiomyopathy, especially in the presence of clinical findings such as ventricular extrasistoli.
The coronary TAC instead assumes a decisive role when suspected an anomaly of origin or course of the coronary arteries, a often substimate cause of sudden death by effort in young athletes, but also when it is necessary to exclude an ischemic cardiopathy in the mature age groups.
The conclusion emerged from the session is clear: only the integration of the main methods of cardiovascular imaging allows to obtain a more accurate and secure assessment of the athlete, with the primary objective of preventing adverse events and reducing the risk of sudden death during physical activity.
-Photo IPA Agency-
(ITALPRESS).
