Sex-related differences in left ventricular structure in early adolescent non-professional athletes.

Background: Professional athletes exhibit lower left ventricular wall thicknesses, diameters and mass (in females), with less frequent training-related electrocardiogram (ECG) changes, as compared with controls.

Methods: We studied the association of sex with left ventricular structure in trained early adolescents. Two hundred and six adolescent Caucasian athletes (mean age 13.