Diagnostic yield and financial implications of a nationwide electrocardiographic screening programme to detect cardiac disease in the young.

Aims: There is limited information on the role of screening with electrocardiography (ECG) for identifying cardiovascular diseases associated with sudden cardiac death (SCD) in a non-select group of adolescents and young adults in the general population.

Methods And Results: Between 2012 and 2014, 26 900 young individuals (aged 14-35 years) were prospectively evaluated with a health questionnaire and ECG. Individuals with abnormal results underwent secondary investigations, the costs of which were being based on the UK National Health Service tariffs.

Left ventricular lead misplacement discovered a decade after cardiac resynchronization therapy-defibrillator implantation: a case report.

Introduction: Satisfactory left ventricular (LV) lead placement into the coronary sinus (CS) can be achieved in the majority of patients but there are still instances of acute failure most often due to anatomical differences, for example due to tortuous CS anatomy. Chronic LV lead misplacement and its delayed discovery is not a common scenario. It is unclear if chronic dual right ventricular pacing can hasten the progression of heart failure.

Role of Doppler Diastolic Parameters in Differentiating Physiological Left Ventricular Hypertrophy from Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

Background: The association between athletic participation and alteration in diastolic function is not well established. The aims of this study were to determine the spectrum of Doppler parameters of left ventricular (LV) diastolic function in a large cohort of healthy athletes and to quantify the overlap between physiologic LV hypertrophy and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).

Methods: A retrospective analysis of indices of LV diastolic function was performed in 1,510 healthy athletes (mean age, 22 ± 5 years; range, 13-33 years; 72% men).

Prevalence of Subclinical Coronary Artery Disease in Masters Endurance Athletes With a Low Atherosclerotic Risk Profile.

Background: Studies in middle-age and older (masters) athletes with atherosclerotic risk factors for coronary artery disease report higher coronary artery calcium (CAC) scores compared with sedentary individuals. Few studies have assessed the prevalence of coronary artery disease in masters athletes with a low atherosclerotic risk profile.

Methods: We assessed 152 masters athletes 54.

Anterior T-Wave Inversion in Young White Athletes and Nonathletes: Prevalence and Significance.

Background: Anterior T-wave inversion (ATWI) on electrocardiography (ECG) in young white adults raises the possibility of cardiomyopathy, specifically arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC). Whereas the 2010 European consensus recommendations for ECG interpretation in young athletes state that ATWI beyond lead V warrants further investigation, the prevalence and significance of ATWI have never been reported in a large population of asymptomatic whites.

Objectives: This study investigated the prevalence and significance of ATWI in a large cohort of young, white adults including athletes.

Effect of Sex and Sporting Discipline on LV Adaptation to Exercise.

Objectives: This study sought to investigate the effect of different types of exercise on left ventricular (LV) geometry in a large group of female and male athletes.

Background: Studies assessing cardiac adaptation in female and male athletes indicate that female athletes reveal smaller increases in LV wall thickness and cavity size compared with male athletes. However, data on sex-specific changes in LV geometry in athletes are scarce.

Abnormal electrocardiographic findings in athletes: Correlation with intensity of sport and level of competition.

Introduction: Athletes can exhibit abnormal electrocardiogram (ECG) phenotypes that require further evaluation prior to competition. These are apparently more prevalent in high-intensity endurance sports. The purpose of this study was to assess the association between ECG findings in athletes and intensity of sport and level of competition.

Cost Implications of Using Different ECG Criteria for Screening Young Athletes in the United Kingdom.

Background: High false-positive rates and cost of additional investigations are an obstacle to electrocardiographic (ECG) screening of young athletes for cardiac disease. However, ECG screening costs have never been systematically assessed in a large cohort of athletes.

Objective: This study investigated the costs of ECG screening in athletes according to the 2010 European Society of Cardiology (ESC) recommendations and the Seattle and refined interpretation criteria.

The prevalence and significance of a short QT interval in 18,825 low-risk individuals including athletes.

Objectives: The short QT syndrome is a cardiac channelopathy characterised by accelerated repolarisation which manifests as a short QT interval on the ECG. The definition of a short QT interval is debated, ranging from <390 to ≤320 ms, and its clinical significance in healthy young individuals is unknown. We assessed the prevalence and medium-term significance of an isolated short QT interval in a diverse young British population.

A young man presenting with paralysis after vigorous exercise.

Thyrotoxic periodic paralysis (TPP) is a rare metabolic disorder characterised by muscular weakness and paralysis in predisposed thyrotoxic patients. Although patients with TPP are almost uniformly men of Asian descent, cases have been reported in Caucasian and other ethnic populations. The rapid increase in ethnic diversity in Western and European nations has led to increase in TPP reports, where it was once considered exceedingly rare.

Unusual presentation of thyrotoxicosis as complete heart block and renal failure: a case report.

Introduction: Thyrotoxicosis is a clinical entity often very difficult to diagnose without biochemical confirmation as its clinical features can be highly varied. The most common cardiac manifestations of thyrotoxicosis are resting sinus tachycardia, supraventricular tachycardia including atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter with or without cardiac failure. Bradycardia and atrio-ventricular conduction defects are very uncommon in thyrotoxicosis.