title: Do ventricular arrhythmias in athletes subside over time?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Sudden death in athletes can occur during sport activities and is presumably related to ventricular arrhythmias.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the long-term follow-up ofathletes with ventricular arrhythmias during an exercise test.
  
  
  METHODS
  From a database of 56,462 athletes we identified 192 athletes (35 years old who had ventricular arrhythmias during an exercise test. Ninety athletes had > or =3 ventricular premature beats (VPB) (group A) and 102 athletes had ventricular couplets or non-sustained ventricular tachycardia during an exercise test (group B). A control group of 92 athletesfrom without ventricular arrhythmias was randomly seleclted from the database (group C). Of the 192 athletes 39 returnied for a repeat exercise test after a mean follow-up period of 70 +/- 25 months and they constitute the study population.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twelve athletes from group A, 21 fromgroup B and 6 from group C returned for a repeat exercise test. The athletes reached a significantly lower peak heart rate during their follow-up exercise test (P = 0.001). More athletes were engaged in competitive sports during their initialexercise test than in the follow-up test (P = 0.021). Most of theathletes who had VPB and/orventricular couplets and/or NSVT during their initial exercise test had far fewer ventricular arrhythmias in the follow-up exercise test (P = 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Athletes engaged in competitive sports are more likely to develop ventricular arrhythmias during exercise. These arrhythmias subside over time when athletes are engaged in non-competitive sports.
authors: Arrhythmia Service, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, Zerifin, affiliated with Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Israel. therese@fuchs.org
authors: Therese
authors: T
authors: Fuchs
authors: College of Management, Rishon Lezion, Israel.
authors: Amram
authors: A
authors: Torjman
authors: Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sport, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Luba
authors: L
authors: Galitzkaya
authors: Arrhythmia Service, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, Zerifin, affiliated with Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Israel.
authors: Marina
authors: M
authors: Leitman
authors: Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sport, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Rutie
authors: R
authors: Pilz-Burstein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000453:epidemiology*; D056352:Athletes; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005080:Exercise Test; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D013177:Sports / Q000502:physiology*; D017180:Tachycardia, Ventricular / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013997:Time Factors; D018879:Ventricular Premature Complexes / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult