Abnormal left ventricular geometry in female collegiate swimmers

Background

There is a paucity of data describing left ventricular geometry changes in female athletes. While some studies suggest that female athletes participating in dynamic sports exhibit higher prevalence of eccentric left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) when compared to men, a recent study suggested more concentric geometry changes in female basketball athletes. We were unable to identify studies describing the left ventricular geometry of female collegiate swimmers.

Objectives

To describe LV geometry changes in a cohort of female collegiate swimmers.

Methods

We analyzed a cohort of female collegiate swimmers who had a pre-participation cardiac evaluation by 12-lead ECG and 2-dimensional echocardiography. Left ventricular (LV) geometry was assessed based on relative wall thickness (RWT) (defined as: 2 x posterior wall thickness (PWT) divided by LV end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD)) and LV mass (LVM) (Devereux's formula: LVM = [0.8 x 1.04 [(LVEDD + interventricular septum + posterior wall thickness)3 − (LVEDD)3]] + 0.6g) and was indexed to body surface area (BSA).LVH was defined as LV mass index >95 g and was defined as concentric when associated with a relative wall thickness (RWT) >0.42 and as eccentric when RWT was ≤0.42. Concentric remodeling was defined as normal LVM index and increased RWT.

Results

A total of 83 female collegiate swimmers were included. Their age was 18.5±0.5 years (mean ± standard deviation, SD), 74 (89.2%) were White, BSA was 1.78±0.11 m2, height 173±6.3 cm, weight 66.2±7.2 K. Their interventricular septum diameter was 0.89±0.14 cm, PWT 0.92±0.15 cm, LVEDD 4.9±0.5 cm and LV end-systolic diameter (LVESD) 3.2±0.4 cm. Left atrium diameter ranged from 2.6 to 4.3 cm (mean 3.4 cm ± 0.4 cm). Aortic root diameter ranged from 1.9 to 3.5 cm (mean 2.7±0.3 cm) (Figure 1). LVH was present in 27 swimmers (32.5%). Eccentric LVH was present in 17 athletes (20.5%), concentric hypertrophy in 10 athletes (12%), and concentric remodeling in 12 (14.5%) (Figure 2). No athletes with LVH or concentric remodeling had borderline or abnormal ECG findings based on international criteria. Only two women with normal LV geometry had abnormal ECG findings: prolonged QT interval and abnormal T wave inversion. There was a linear correlation between BSA with LVEDD, LVESD and LV mass (r=0.40, 0.35, and 0.48 with P<0.001,0.002 and <0.001, respectively). However, there was no statistically significant difference between LV geometry groups based on BSA or blood pressure.

Conclusion

Our data document a high incidence of eccentric hypertrophy among female collegiate swimmers. Concentric remodeling and hypertrophy were also relatively high. Differentiating physiologic from pathologic cardiac remodeling in these athletes is critical to prevent potential complications such as sudden cardiac death, arrhythmias, and other adverse outcomes.

Funding Acknowledgement

Type of funding sources: Foundation. Main funding source(s): This work was supported in part by the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) Foundation Research Grant 2016 awarded to KE, and the University of Florida REDCap uses the NIH National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) grant UL1 TR001427. Figure 1Figure 2. LV geometry in female swimmers

P5730Do hypertensive women with coronary artery disease benefit from lowering systolic blood pressure under 130 mmHg? Long-term mortality in the INternational VErapamil SR-trandolapril STudy (INVEST)

Background

Hypertension (HTN) and coronary artery disease (CAD) are a prevalent combination in women, however limited data are available to guide blood pressure (BP) management. We hypothesize older women with HTN and CAD may not derive the same prognostic benefit from systolic BP (SBP) lowering <130 mmHg.

Purpose

To investigate the long-term mortality implications of different achieved SBP levels in hypertensive women with CAD.

Methods

Long-term, all-cause mortality data were analyzed for 9216 women, stratified by risk attributable to clinical severity of CAD (women with prior myocardial infarction or revascularization considered at high, all others at low risk) and by age (50 - <65 or ≥65 yo). The prognostic impact of achieving mean in-trial SBP <130 (referent group) was compared with 130 to <140 and ≥140 mmHg using Cox proportional hazards, adjusting for demographic and clinical characteristics.

Results

During 108,838 person-years of follow-up, 2945 deaths occurred. High risk women (n=3011) had increased long-term mortality in comparison to low risk women (n=6205) (adjusted HR 1.38, CI 1.28–1.5, p<0.001). Within risk groups, crude mortality percentages decreased according to BP values (table). As expected, high risk women were more likely to be ≥65 yo (68.68% vs. 50.51%, p<0.0001) or have SBP ≥140 mmHg (43.08% vs. 31.18%, p<0.0001). In adjusted analyses, an SBP ≥140 mmHg was associated with worse outcomes than SBP <130 mmHg in the entire cohort (HR 1.3, CI 1.2–1.5, p<0.0001) and when stratifying by risk (low risk group, HR = 1.47, CI 1.28–1.7, p<0.0001; high risk group, HR = 1.71, CI 1.01–1.35, p=0.03). In analyses stratified by age and risk, women ≥65 years and at high risk had decreased mortality in the 130 - <140 SBP category vs. <130 mmHg (HR 0.812, 95% CI 0.689–0.957, p=0.0133; figure).

Women and deaths by risk and SBP group Group SBP category Women (n) Mortality (n) Mortality (%) High risk <130 773 338 44 130–<140 941 414 44 ≥140 1297 694 54 Low risk <130 2187 390 18 130–<140 2083 451 22 ≥140 1935 658 34 SBP = systolic blood pressure; n = number; % = percent per each group.

Mortality adjusted HRs

Conclusion

In women ≥65 yo with hypertension and prior myocardial infarction and/or coronary revascularization enrolled in INVEST, a SBP between 130 to <140 mmHg was associated with lower all-cause, long-term mortality versus SBP <130 mmHg.

Acknowledgement/Funding

The main INVEST (International Verapamil [SR]/Trandolapril Study) was funded by grants from BASF Pharma, Ludwigshafen, Germany; Abbott Laboratories, A