The impact of demographic, anthropometric and athletic characteristics on left atrial size in athletes.

The structural adaptations of the “athlete’s heart” include left atrial (LA) enlargement. A literature search was performed based on PubMed listings up to 2nd November 2019 using "athletes AND left atrium", "athletes AND left atrial", "sports AND left atrium", "sports AND left atrial", “exercise AND left atrium” and “exercise AND left atrial” as the search terms. Eligible studies included those reporting the influence of demographic, anthropometric and athletic characteristics on left atrial size in athletes. A total of 58 studies were included in this review article. Although LA volume has been reported to be greater in males compared to females when indexed for body surface area (BSA), there was no difference between sexes. The positive association between LA size and age in athletes may reflect the increase in body size with maturation in nonadult athletes and the training age of endurance athletic activity in adult athletes. Caucasian and black athletes have been demonstrated to exhibit similar LA enlargement. The positive association of LA size with lean body mass possibly accounts for the relationship of LA size with BSA. LA enlargement has been reported only in endurance-trained, but not in strength-trained athletes. LA size appears to increase with an increase in both the volume and intensity of endurance training. LA size correlates independently with the training age of endurance athletes. The athlete’s characteristics that independently determine LA size include lean body mass, endurance training and training age

Quantification of fractional flow reserve based on angiographic image data

Coronary angiography provides excellent visualization of coronary arteries, but has limitations in assessing the clinical significance of a coronary stenosis. Fractional flow reserve (FFR) has been shown to be reliable in discerning stenoses responsible for inducible ischemia. The purpose of this study is to validate a technique for FFR quantification using angiographic image data. The study was carried out on 10 anesthetized, closed-chest swine using angioplasty balloon catheters to produce partial occlusion. Angiography based FFR was calculated from an angiographically measured ratio of coronary blood flow to arterial lumen volume. Pressure-based FFR was measured from a ratio of distal coronary pressure to aortic pressure. Pressure-wire measurements of FFR (FFRP) correlated linearly with angiographic volume-derived measurements of FFR (FFRV) according to the equation: FFRP = 0.41 FFRV + 0.52 (P-value < 0.001). The correlation coefficient and standard error of estimate were 0.85 and 0.07, respectively. This is the first study to provide an angiographic method to quantify FFR in swine. Angiographic FFR can potentially provide an assessment of the physiological severity of a coronary stenosis during routine diagnostic cardiac catheterization without a need to cross a stenosis with a pressure-wire

Myocardial infarction in a patient with left ventricular noncompaction: a case report

Mehrnoush Toufan,1 Roya Shahvalizadeh,1 Majid Khalili21Cardiovascular Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran; 2Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Baku, AzerbaijanAbstract: We describe a 73-year-old male patient with left ventricular noncompaction (LVNC) who was diagnosed with acute myocardial infarction (MI), three-vessel coronary artery disease, a fresh intraventricular thrombus, and mitral regurgitation. He was treated with full anticoagulant therapy, coronary artery bypass grafting, and mitral valve repair. This case adds to a small but growing literature showing association between LVNC and MI and/or coronary artery disease. We suggest that patients with LVNC could be considered at heightened risk for MI, and the two conditions might have a common genetic underpinning in some cases.Keywords: myocardium, development, cardiomyopathy, echocardiograph

Bilingual proficiency and cognitive reserve in Persian�English bilingual older adults

Conclusions: These results demonstrated the influence of bilingualism on shaping cognitive reserve in Persian�English bilingual older adults, representing linguistic experience-dependent neuroplasticity. Methods: Persian and English versions of the Word Association Test were used among 26 educated older adults with a mean age of 67.52 years who became bilingual in Persian�English early in life. Lexical memory and Bergen dichotic listening tests were performed. Background and aims: More than genetic and physical influences, different environmental stimuli affect brain reserve, and bilingualism is one example. In this study, effect of bilingual proficiency on older adult�s cognitive reserve was investigated. Results: The bilingual proficiency score in all participants was within the range for early bilingualism. The Persian version of Word Association Test content validity index was 98.17 . The inter-rater reliability for the Persian version of Word Association Test was 0.980, and that for the English version was 0.986. In addition, the intra-rater reliability for the Persian version was 0.857, and that for the English version was 0.954 (p < 0.001). There was significant correlation between the frequency of words expressed in the English Word Association Test and years for which English has been spoken as a second language (p � 0.045). A significant correlation was observed between the bilingual proficiency score and lexical memory score (p < 0.043). Bilingual proficiency score also showed a significant correlation with the dichotic listening scores in all three non-forced, forced-right, and forced-left attention situations (p � 0.045). © 2014, Springer International Publishing Switzerland

Assessment of electrocardiography, echocardiography, and heart rate variability in dynamic and static type athletes

Mehrnoush Toufan,1 Babak Kazemi,1 Fariborz Akbarzadeh,1 Amin Ataei,1 Majid Khalili21Cardiovascular Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran; 2Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Baku, AzerbaijanBackground: Over the last two decades, morphological cardiac changes induced by athletic conditioning have been of great interest. Therefore, several studies have been orchestrated to delineate electrocardiography (ECG), echocardiography, and heart rate variability (HRV) findings in athletes.Purpose: To assess the ECG, echocardiography, and HRV in a group of dynamic and static type athletes.Methods: Fifty professional athletes (20 static and 30 dynamic exercise athletes) and 50 healthy nonathletes (control group) were recruited. Standard 12-lead ECG and transthoracic echocardiography was performed on all athletes and the control group. Through echocardiography, variables including left ventricular (LV) end-diastolic/systolic diameter, LV mass, and left atrial volume index were measured. In addition, both the athletes and the control group underwent ECG Holter monitoring for 15 minutes and several parameters related to HRV (time and frequency domain) were recorded.Results: The most common ECG abnormalities among the athletes were sinus bradycardia and incomplete right bundle branch block. LV end-diastolic diameter and left atrial volume index were significantly greater in the dynamic athletes (P &amp;lt; 0.001). LV end-systolic diameter was significantly lower in the static group (P &amp;lt; 0.001). LV mass of the dynamic and static athletes was significantly greater than that of the controls (P &amp;lt; 0.001). Among the ECG Holter monitoring findings, the dynamic athletes had lower systolic blood pressure than the controls (P = 0.01). Heart rate was lowest in the control group (P &amp;lt; 0.001).Conclusion: The most common ECG abnormalities among adolescent Iranian athletes were sinus bradycardia and incomplete right bundle branch block. Static exercise seemed to reduce LV end-systolic diameter, while dynamic exercise resulted in increased LV end-diastolic diameter and left atrial volume index. Additionally, Iranian athletes showed no differences in HRV parameters, excluding heart rate and systolic blood pressure, compared with the nonathletes.Keywords: athlete&amp;#39;s heart, electrocardiography, echocardiography, heart rate variabilit