Electrocardiographic and morphological cardiac remodeling in competitive female athletes - a scoping review.

Aims: To quantitatively analyse exercise-induced cardiac remodeling (EICR) data in female athletes.

Methods: This scoping review included from the databases Medline, Embase, and Google Scholar, peer-reviewed original English-language articles on female athlete-populations aged ≥18 years containing data on electrocardiography (ECG), echocardiography or cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR), and excluded athletes with cardiovascular conditions. From the extracted ECG data, we calculated prevalence percentages, and from the imaging data we compared the results with the upper reference limits of the general female population (URL).

Long-term cardiac follow-up of athletes infected with SARS-CoV-2 after resumption of elite-level sports.

Objective: Longitudinal consequences and potential interactions of COVID-19 and elite-level sports and exercise are unclear. Therefore, we determined the long-term detrimental cardiac effects of the interaction between SARS-CoV-2 infection and the highest level of sports and exercise.

Methods: This prospective controlled study included elite athletes from the Evaluation of Lifetime participation in Intensive Top-level sports and Exercise cohort.

Cardiac sequelae in athletes following COVID-19 vaccination: evidence and misinformation.

The recognition of myocarditis as a rare side effect of SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccination has sparked a global debate on vaccine safety, especially in the realm of sports. The main proposed mechanisms in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 mRNA vaccination-associated myocarditis (C-VAM) are based on the activation of the innate- and adaptive immune system against a susceptible immune-genetic background, including the recognition of mRNA as an antigen by the immune system, molecular mimicry between SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein and cardiac tissue antigens and inflammatory sex-hormone signalling. The relatively younger age of the athlete population hypothetically constellates an increased risk of C-VAM.

Prevalence and diagnostic significance of de-novo 12-lead ECG changes after COVID-19 infection in elite soccer players.

Background And Aim: The efficacy of pre-COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 infection 12-lead ECGs for identifying athletes with myopericarditis has never been reported. We aimed to assess the prevalence and significance of de-novo ECG changes following COVID-19 infection.

Methods: In this multicentre observational study, between March 2020 and May 2022, we evaluated consecutive athletes with COVID-19 infection.

ELITE: rationale and design of a longitudinal elite athlete, extreme cardiovascular phenotyping, prospective cohort study.

Introduction: The cardiovascular benefits of physical exercise are well-known. However, vigorous exercise has also been associated with adverse cardiac effects. To improve our understanding of cardiovascular adaptation to exercise versus maladaptation and pathology, the limits of adaptation should be firmly established using state-of-the-art diagnostic modalities.

Case report: the role of multimodal imaging to optimize the timing of return to sports in an elite athlete with persistent COVID-19 myocardial inflammation.

Background: COVID-19 has been associated with myocardial abnormalities on cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR). We report a case of COVID-19 myocarditis in an elite athlete.

Case Summary: A male, 21-year-old elite football player had tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 on a polymerase-chain-reaction test and was referred for cardiac evaluation after experiencing palpitations after returning to sports (RTS).

Cardiac abnormalities in athletes after SARS-CoV-2 infection: a systematic review.

Objectives: Quantification of pericardial/myocardial involvement and risks of sudden cardiac arrest/sudden cardiac death (SCA/SCD) after SARS-CoV-2 infection in athletes who return to sports.

Design: Systematic review on post-SARS-CoV-2 infection pericardial/myocardial manifestations in athletes.

Data Sources: Combinations of key terms in Medline, Embase and Scopus (through 2 June 2021).

Efficacy of the RADPAD Protection Drape in Reducing Operators' Radiation Exposure in the Catheterization Laboratory: A Sham-Controlled Randomized Trial.

Background: Interventional cardiologists are increasingly exposed to radiation-induced diseases like cataract and the stochastic risk of left-sided brain tumors. The RADPAD is a sterile, disposable, lead-free shield placed on the patient with the aim to minimize operator-received scatter radiation. The objective of the trial was to examine the RADPAD's efficacy in a real-world situation.