Ultra-distance athletes present physiological changes in cardiac function and volumes that return to normal almost completely 48 hours after the test
Hospiten cardiologist Dr. Alejandro de la Rosa will present some of the results of this study in Slovenia, on the occasion of the next European Congress on Preventive Cardiology and Sports Cardiology
Santa Cruz de Tenerife, January 31 2018:- The Hospiten Group, in collaboration with the Cajamar Tenerife Bluetrail organized by the Cabildo de Tenerife, presented the results of the cardiovascular study, pioneering in Europe, carried out on 15 runners of this high mountain event in the ultra-distance modality, held on June 10 of last year.
One of the main novelties in this study is that the results were analyzed 48 hours after the race, and not immediately afterwards as usual, in order to see how the runners recover after such a strenuous effort.
The Hospiten Rambla cardiologist and person behind this initiative, Dr. Alejandro de la Rosa, explains that one of the main conclusions is that the hearts of these endurance athletes adapt better to extreme conditions and that the athletes almost fully recover from changes produced within 48 hours of completing the race.
"This is the first study that analyzes these changes in the hearts of mountain ultra-trail athletes, which runs from sea level to above 3000 meters at Teide, with extreme temperature changes, thin air and lack of sleep".
Another novelty is that a new way to evaluate cardiac function was used, such as "Myocardial Deformation", a technique that allows the diagnosis of myocardial diseases before contractile activity is affected.
"All participating athletes underwent an electrocardiogram and a baseline echocardiography in which ventricular function was studied with the usual parameters, as well as with new tools such as myocardial deformation, not previously analyzed in mountain ultra-distance tests with the characteristics unique to the Tenerife Bluetrail”, he adds.
Likewise, all runners wore a ‘Nuubo’ sports shirt able to record the athletes’ electrocardiogram throughout the race. This has allowed us to better understand how the heart rate behaves in conditions so adverse for the body, without presenting alterations in the cardiac rhythm during the follow-up.
Several papers with the preliminary results of the study will be presented by Dr. de la Rosa at the European Congress on Preventive Cardiology and Sports Cardiology to be held in the capital of Slovenia, Ljubjana, in April 2018, as it is novel research in sports cardiology.
The development of this scientific initiative by Hospiten consolidates the support and commitment of the healthcare group to sport and the importance of its benefits to health and the prevention of cardiovascular diseases. And, once again, Hospiten reiterates its support of clubs and athletes, as well as of the important sporting events that take place on the island, such as the Tenerife Bluetrail.
The Hospiten Group is an international health network committed to providing high quality service, with more than 45 years’ experience, which has nineteen private medical-hospital centers in Spain, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Jamaica, and more than one hundred ambulatory medical centers, both their own and associated under the brand Clinic Assist. The company is chaired by Dr. Pedro Luis Cobiella Suarez, and attends one million patients from around the world annually, with a workforce of more than 4,000 people.