The correlation of blood pressure changes and cardiac morpho- functional restructuring in young athletes

A steady increase in the number of young sportsmen predetermines the relevance of studying the nature and severity of cardiovascular system remodeling in young athletes, including the development of arterial hypertension (AH) and left ventricular myocardial hypertrophy (LVHM).

Objective. To study the prevalence and nature of arterial hypertension (AH) and its associations with signs of cardiovascular remodeling in young athletes taking into account pathogenetic relationship and genetic determination.

Characteristics of children and methods. The study included 80 young athletes (including 42 boys, average age 14,5±1,54 years), divided into 4 groups depending on the kind of sports (1 – cyclic, 2 – game, 3 – complex coordination, 4 – power). We used the following research methods: “office” (i.e. during visit to the doctor) measurement of blood pressure, electrocardiography, echocardiography, color Doppler scanning of the neck vessels, daily monitoring of blood pressure, bicycle ergometry, genetic testing using the original panel with 448 markers.

Results. An increase in blood pressure at rest was detected in 2,5% of children engaged in power sports, an insufficient decrease at night – in 16,3% of children, and an excessive reaction of blood pressure to dosed physical activity – in 25% of children. These changes correlated with signs of sports remodeling, in particular with the formation of left ventricular myocardial hypertrophy, which was diagnosed in 7–12,5% of athletes. According to the results of genetic testing, pronounced polymorphism in the NO synthase gene at three loci (rs10918594, rs12143842, rs16847548) was associated with a reorganization of the cardiovascular system in 45% of athletes.

Conclusion. Violation of the circadian profile of blood pressure and excessive reaction to physical activity demonstrate 7,5–25% of young athletes, especially those involved in complex coordination and power sports. These changes were associated with the severity of sports remodeling and determined by a genetic predisposition.

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