Background In this issue, Drs Singh, Pattisapu, and Emery provide an excellent overview of the approach to exercise and review of the updated US Physical Activity Guidelines (PAG).1,2 In early 2019, ...the 2018 update of the 2008 PAG was published, a collaborative effort between the Centers for Disease Control, National Institutes of Health, and the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition.3 The updated PAG recognizes the enormous growth in physical activity and exercise focused research over the last decade. The benefits of physical activity and exercise are well established. The authors importantly point out that promotion of exercise is a public health issue that involves numerous stakeholders such as health care, government and industry.
Abstract Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the leading cause of mortality in athletes during sport. A variety of mostly hereditary, structural, or electrical cardiac disorders are associated with SCD in ...young athletes, the majority of which can be identified or suggested by abnormalities on a resting 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG). Whether used for diagnostic or screening purposes, physicians responsible for the cardiovascular care of athletes should be knowledgeable and competent in ECG interpretation in athletes. However, in most countries a shortage of physician expertise limits wider application of the ECG in the care of the athlete. A critical need exists for physician education in modern ECG interpretation that distinguishes normal physiological adaptations in athletes from distinctly abnormal findings suggestive of underlying pathology. Since the original 2010 European Society of Cardiology recommendations for ECG interpretation in athletes, ECG standards have evolved quickly over the last decade; pushed by a growing body of scientific data that both tests proposed criteria sets and establishes new evidence to guide refinements. On February 26-27, 2015, an international group of experts in sports cardiology, inherited cardiac disease, and sports medicine convened in Seattle, Washington, to update contemporary standards for ECG interpretation in athletes. The objective of the meeting was to define and revise ECG interpretation standards based on new and emerging research and to develop a clear guide to the proper evaluation of ECG abnormalities in athletes. This statement represents an international consensus for ECG interpretation in athletes and provides expert opinion-based recommendations linking specific ECG abnormalities and the secondary evaluation for conditions associated with SCD.
Abstract
In 2014, a joint consensus document dealing with the management of antithrombotic therapy in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients presenting with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and/or undergoing ...percutaneous coronary or valve interventions was published, which represented an effort of the European Society of Cardiology Working Group on Thrombosis, European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA), European Association of Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions (EAPCI), and European Association of Acute Cardiac Care (ACCA) endorsed by the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) and Asia-Pacific Heart Rhythm Society (APHRS). Since publication of this document, additional data from observational cohorts, randomized controlled trials, and percutaneous interventions as well as new guidelines have been published. Moreover, new drugs and devices/interventions are also available, with an increasing evidence base. The approach to managing AF has also evolved towards a more integrated or holistic approach. In recognizing these advances since the last consensus document, EHRA, WG Thrombosis, EAPCI, and ACCA, with additional contributions from HRS, APHRS, Latin America Heart Rhythm Society (LAHRS), and Cardiac Arrhythmia Society of Southern Africa (CASSA), proposed a focused update, to include the new data, with the remit of comprehensively reviewing the available evidence and publishing a focused update consensus document on the management of antithrombotic therapy in AF patients presenting with ACS and/or undergoing percutaneous coronary or valve interventions, and providing up-to-date consensus recommendations for use in clinical practice.
Despite the high rate of sudden death after myocardial infarction among patients with a low ejection fraction, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators are contraindicated until 40 to 90 days after ...myocardial infarction. Whether a wearable cardioverter-defibrillator would reduce the incidence of sudden death during this high-risk period is unclear.
We randomly assigned (in a 2:1 ratio) patients with acute myocardial infarction and an ejection fraction of 35% or less to receive a wearable cardioverter-defibrillator plus guideline-directed therapy (the device group) or to receive only guideline-directed therapy (the control group). The primary outcome was the composite of sudden death or death from ventricular tachyarrhythmia at 90 days (arrhythmic death). Secondary outcomes included death from any cause and nonarrhythmic death.
Of 2302 participants, 1524 were randomly assigned to the device group and 778 to the control group. Participants in the device group wore the device for a median of 18.0 hours per day (interquartile range, 3.8 to 22.7). Arrhythmic death occurred in 1.6% of the participants in the device group and in 2.4% of those in the control group (relative risk, 0.67; 95% confidence interval CI, 0.37 to 1.21; P=0.18). Death from any cause occurred in 3.1% of the participants in the device group and in 4.9% of those in the control group (relative risk, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.43 to 0.98; uncorrected P=0.04), and nonarrhythmic death in 1.4% and 2.2%, respectively (relative risk, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.33 to 1.19; uncorrected P=0.15). Of the 48 participants in the device group who died, 12 were wearing the device at the time of death. A total of 20 participants in the device group (1.3%) received an appropriate shock, and 9 (0.6%) received an inappropriate shock.
Among patients with a recent myocardial infarction and an ejection fraction of 35% or less, the wearable cardioverter-defibrillator did not lead to a significantly lower rate of the primary outcome of arrhythmic death than control. (Funded by the National Institutes of Health and Zoll Medical; VEST ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01446965 .).
Serological assessment of cardiac troponins (cTn) is the gold standard to assess myocardial injury in clinical practice. A greater magnitude of acutely or chronically elevated cTn concentrations is ...associated with lower event-free survival in patients and the general population. Exercise training is known to improve cardiovascular function and promote longevity, but exercise can produce an acute rise in cTn concentrations, which may exceed the upper reference limit in a substantial number of individuals. Whether exercise-induced cTn elevations are attributable to a physiological or pathological response and if they are clinically relevant has been debated for decades. Thus far, exercise-induced cTn elevations have been viewed as the only benign form of cTn elevations. However, recent studies report intriguing findings that shed new light on the underlying mechanisms and clinical relevance of exercise-induced cTn elevations. We will review the biochemical characteristics of cTn assays, key factors determining the magnitude of postexercise cTn concentrations, the release kinetics, underlying mechanisms causing and contributing to exercise-induced cTn release, and the clinical relevance of exercise-induced cTn elevations. We will also explain the association with cardiac function, correlates with (subclinical) cardiovascular diseases and exercise-induced cTn elevations predictive value for future cardiovascular events. Last, we will provide recommendations for interpretation of these findings and provide direction for future research in this field.
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