Characteristics and Causes of Sports-Related Sudden Death in the General Population during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Purpose: COVID-19 is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study is to determine the burden, characteristics, and causes of sudden death in sport (SrSD) before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in the general population.

Methods: Retrospective observational study.

Cardiac adaptation to endurance exercise training: Differential impact of swimming and running.

: High-intensity training has been associated with bi-ventricular and bi-atrial remodelling and a potentially increased risk of arrhythmias. Most of the evidence is based on endurance disciplines mainly involving the lower part of the body, while few data is available on upper body disciplines. The purpose of this study was to compare chronic cardiac remodelling induced by running and swimming as well as the acute response of ventricular and atrial performance after an upper-body and a lower-body endurance race.

Macronutrient and mineral intake effects on racing time and cardiovascular health in non-elite marathon runners.

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the intake of specific macronutrients and minerals that could influence cardiovascular health in recreational marathon runners.

Methods: We grouped 37 male runners into two groups according to their 50th percentile race time (3.39 h) and divided them into fast (group 1 [G1]: 3.

Aortic root remodelling in competitive athletes.

Background: Controversy remains about the cut-off limits for detecting aortic dilatation in athletes, particularly in large-sized individuals. The allometric scaling model has been used to obtain size-independent measurements in cardiovascular structures in the general population.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to validate the use of allometric scaling in the measurement of the aortic root for competitive athletes and to offer reference values.

Affected pathways and transcriptional regulators in gene expression response to an ultra-marathon trail: Global and independent activity approaches.

Gene expression (GE) analyses on blood samples from marathon and half-marathon runners have reported significant impacts on the immune and inflammatory systems. An ultra-marathon trail (UMT) represents a greater effort due to its more testing conditions. For the first time, we report the genome-wide GE profiling in a group of 16 runners participating in an 82 km UMT competition.

Bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA) for measuring the hydration status in young elite synchronized swimmers.

Purpose: The assessment of body hydration is a complex process, and no measurement is valid for all situations. Bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA) has emerged as a relatively novel technique for assessing hydration status in sports. We applied BIVA a) to determine hydration changes evoked by an intense synchronized swimming (SS) training session; b) to characterize the sample of young elite swimmers in relation with a nonathletic reference population; and c) to generate its 50%, 75% and 95% percentiles of the bioelectrical variables.

Acute, Exercise Dose-Dependent Impairment in Atrial Performance During an Endurance Race: 2D Ultrasound Speckle-Tracking Strain Analysis.

Objectives: This study sought to understand and characterize the acute atrial response to endurance exercise and the influence of the amount of exercise performed.

Background: Endurance exercise seems to be recognized as a risk factor for developing atrial arrhythmia. Atrial geometrical and functional remodeling may be the underlying substrate.

Inter-individual variability in right ventricle adaptation after an endurance race.

Background: Right ventricle (RV) dysfunction has been described in athletes after endurance races. We aimed to understand and characterize the RV response to endurance exercise, the impact of individual variability and the effects of the amount of exercise.

Methods And Results: Echocardiography was performed in 55 healthy adults at baseline and after a three-stage trail race: short (14 km; n = 17); medium (35 km; n = 21); and long (56 km; n = 17).

The therapeutic lamp: treating small-animal phobias.

We all have an irrational fear or two. Some of us get scared by an unexpected visit from a spider in our house; others get nervous when they look down from a high building. Fear is an evolutionary and adaptive function that can promote self-preservation and help us deal with the feared object or situation.