ABSTRACT

Introduction:

Sudden deaths in athletes during or immediately after sports activities worry the athletes, their families and clubs. There has been still no consensus on how to conduct pre-participation evaluations of the sports. In this study, our aim was to evaluate the results of cardiac examinations of children and adolescents performed before participating in sports and to review the literature.

Materials and Methods:

This retrospective study was conducted between January 2019 and January 2020 in the pediatric cardiology outpatient clinic. One-hundred and fifty three children and adolescents were included in the study. Beside history taking, physical examination, electrocardiography (ECG) and echocardiography (ECHO) examinations of the cases, Exercise test and rhythm Holter examination results were evaluated.

Results:

Of the cases, 108 (70%) were male and 45 (30%) were female. They were divided into three groups according to their age; 6-9 years (n=23), 10-13 years (n=78) and 14-17 years (n=52). As a result of the cardiac evaluation of 153 children who applied for a report before participating in sports, it was found appropriate for 137 children to participate in all kinds of sports activities. It was decided that ten children would be able to perform light sports activities suitable for their cardiac conditions. These children had being followed up for various mild acquired or congenital heart diseases. Six children with severe heart disease were not allowed to perform any sports, stating that it may be risky for their health.

Conclusions:

After detailed preparticipation cardiac evaluation with history taking, physical examination and ECG by physicians, we consider that to refer risky cases to pediatric cardiology is important to avoid undesirable conditions.

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Cardiac Evaluation of the Children Before Participation of Sports Activities

ABSTRACT

References