Echocardiography and coronary CT angiography imaging of variations in coronary anatomy and coronary abnormalities in athletic children: detection of coronary abnormalities that create a risk for sudden death.

In a recent publication, Maron et al. reported the causes of sudden death in athletes from data collected in the US National Registry of Sudden Death in Athletes at the Minneapolis Heart Institute Registry. It is not surprising that in this study, cardiovascular disease is reported as the most common cause of sudden death in athletes (56%).

A 24 h corticosterone exposure exacerbates excitotoxic insult in rat hippocampal slice cultures independently of glucocorticoid receptor activation or protein synthesis.

Elevations in circulating concentrations of glucocorticoids (GC) may increase the expression and/or sensitivity of ionotropic transmitter receptors in brain. For example, recent evidence suggests that acute and chronic GC exposure may alter the number and/or function of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-type glutamate receptors, effects that may sensitize the brain to excitotoxic insults. The present studies examined the ability of short-term (24 h) corticosterone (CORT) exposure to potentiate NMDA-induced cytotoxicity in rat hippocampal slice cultures.