MiscellaneousAortic Root Size and Prevalence of Aortic Regurgitation in Elite Strength Trained Athletes
Section snippets
Methods and Results
Professional strength-trained athletes referred to the Institute of Sports Science from 2001 to 2005 were enrolled in this study. Subjects with Marfan’s syndrome (n = 1), Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and bicuspid aortic valves (n = 2) were excluded from the study. The cohort included 100 consecutive male athletes (mean age 22.1 ± 3.6 years; all were finalists or medalists in the country). Previous studies have suggested that height is the most important determinant of aortic root size compared with
Discussion
To the best of our knowledge, there is no published report regarding strength training–induced dimensional adaptations of the aortic root. The significant observation in this study is the impact of strength training on the dimension of the aortic root. In the present study, using an accurate measurement of the entire aortic root, we showed significant increase in aortic root size in elite strength-trained athletes compared with the values predicted for age- and height-matched controls.
References (23)
- et al.
Prognostic significance of aortic root dilation in the Marfan syndrome
J Am Coll Cardiol
(1993) - et al.
Association of aortic dilation with regurgitant, stenotic, and functionally normal bicuspid aortic valves
J Am Coll Cardiol
(1992) - et al.
Cystic medial necrosis of the ascending aorta in relation to age and hypertension
Am J Cardiol
(1970) - et al.
Pathogenesis of dissecting aneurysm of the aorta: comparative histopathologic study of significance of medial changes
Am J Cardiol
(1977) - et al.
Aortic dimensions in tall men and women
Am J Cardiol
(1993) - et al.
New perspectives in the assessment of cardiac chamber dimensions during development and adulthood
J Am Coll Cardiol
(1992) - et al.
Two-dimensional echocardiographic aortic root dimensions in normal children and adults
Am J Cardiol
(1989) - et al.
Pulsed Doppler echocardiography in the diagnosis and estimation of severity of aortic insufficiency
Am J Cardiol
(1982) - et al.
Evaluation of aortic insufficiency by Doppler color flow mapping
J Am Coll Cardiol
(1987) - et al.
Severe aortic regurgitation from systemic hypertension (without aortic dissection) requiring aortic valve replacement: analysis of four patients
Am J Cardiol
(1982)
Prevalence of aortic regurgitation by color flow Doppler in relation to aortic root size
J Am Soc Echocardiogr
Cited by (63)
Aortic root/left ventricular diameters golden ratio in competitive athletes
2023, International Journal of CardiologySports Participation and Physical Activity in Individuals with Heritable Thoracic Aortic Disease and Aortopathy Conditions
2022, Clinics in Sports MedicineAortic Root Dilation and Testosterone Use: Are They Associated?
2020, Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular AnesthesiaCitation Excerpt :Two studies stand out, with substantial evidence supporting a relationship between testosterone and aortic dilation. The first and most recent, by Lu et al.2 from 2007, studied 48 male Sprague-Dawley rats. The researchers found that testosterone can cause acute vasorelaxation and can modulate smooth muscle cells via K+ channels in the rat thoracic aorta, demonstrating the acute effects of testosterone.
Rugby Player's Aorta: Alarming Prevalence of Ascending Aortic Dilatation and Effacement in Elite Rugby Players Rugby Player's Aorta
2020, Heart Lung and CirculationCitation Excerpt :Our study was not powered to identify susceptible rugby positions, however the first row of the scrum are subjected to the most extreme isometric forces and may be particularly at risk. Whilst the relative effects of strength or endurance sports on the aorta is contested, there are now several studies suggesting strength or power sports enlarge aortas slightly more, at the time of competition [14,21,22]. Such aortic dilatation was progressive and correlated with longer duration of training in 100 elite wrestlers, compared with a control group [22], but still did not exceed a mean aortic root size of 35 mm in the subgroup who had trained for the longest period.
Noninvasive predictors of cardiac arrhythmias in bodybuilders
2018, Revista Portuguesa de Cardiologia