Textbook of Sports and Exercise Cardiology

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Axel Pressler, born 1970, is running a private center for sports and exercise cardiology in Munich, Germany. He is a specialist in internal medicine and cardiology and has focused his clinical and scientific interests on sports cardiology, which has evolved in recent years as a novel, important subspecialty at the interface of cardiology, sports and preventive medicine. He clinically cares for both athletes and cardiac patients who seek medical advice regarding safe and effective sports participation and optimal medical or non-pharmacological therapy. Prior to this, Axel Pressler has worked over years as a senior physician and researcher at the Department of Prevention, Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine, Technical University of Munich (TUM), which is among the largest sports medicine and cardiology centers in Germany. He is still teaching students at the TUM and has regular lectures on sports cardiology and prevention issues. He is a nucleus member of both the German and European Working Groups of Sports Cardiology and is involved in writing specific guidelines for sports participation with cardiac disease and prevention of sudden cardiac death. Prof. Josef Niebauer, MD, PhD, MBA is a specialist in internal medicine, cardiology, sports medicine and sports cardiology. He is the university chair and clinical director of the Institute of Sports Medicine, Prevention and Rehabilitation at the Paracelsus Medical University Salzburg and is also responsible for the Olympic Centre Salzburg-Rif. Each year, several thousand leisure-time to world class athletes, healthy as well as patient athletes, but also patients suffering and/or recovering from cardiovascular, pulmonary and metabolic diseases receive as required pre-participation screening, medical examinations, advice, therapy, and training recommendations. Among others he is the current president of the Austrian Society of Prevention and Rehabilitation, Vice- and Past-President of the Austrian Society of Sports Medicine and Prevention, as well as chair-elect of the Sports Cardiology section of the European Association of Preventive Cardiology, an association of the European Society of Cardiology. He lectures at several universities, has received interantional awards for his clinical as well as scientific exerpertise and has published more than 240 manuscripts in leading medical journals and books worldwide.

Preface.- Introduction: Sports and exercise cardiology - current status and future perspectives.-PART I: Sports cardiology in young competitive athletes.-Definition of athletes and classification of sports.-The cardiologist as part of the athlete medical team.-Athlete´s heart: basic physiology and adaptation to exercise.-Impact of sporting disciplines and body size on the athlete's heart.-Sudden cardiac death in athletes: incidence, causes and prevention strategies.-Medical evaluation of athletes: Medical history and physical examination.-Medical evaluation of athletes: Electrocardiogram.-Medical evaluation of athletes: Echocardiography.-Medical evaluation of athletes: Further imaging modalities: Stress echo, CT and MRI.-Medical evaluation of athletes: Exercise testing.-Medical evaluation of athletes: Genetic testing.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation:  Arterial hypertension.- Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitivesports participation: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Left ventricular hypertrabeculation.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Valvular heart disease .-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Arrhythmias.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Pacemakers and ICD.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Myocarditis and myocardial fibrosis.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Channelopathies .-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Coronary anomalies and myocardial bridging at risk of sudden death.-Specific cardiovascular diseases and competitive sports participation: Congenital heart disease.-Specific populations: Pediatric and adolescent athletes.-Specific populations: Female athletes.-Specific populations: Athletes of Afro-Caribbean origin.-Commotio cordis .-Cardiovascular side effects of commonly prescribed medications and performance enhancing drugs and special considerations for the athlete.-Cardiac safety in sports arenas.-PART II: Sports cardiology in recreational / master athletes.-Medical supervision of mass sporting events.-Incidence and causes of sudden cardiac death in recreational athletes.-Potential cardiac damage induced by strenuous exercise.-The role of imaging .-Endurance exercise and atrial fibrillation.-Sports in extreme environments: cardiovascular issues.-PART III: Exercise in primary prevention of cardiovascular disease.-Epidemiology: Physical activity, exercise and mortality.-Impact of exercise on cardiovascular risk factors: Arterial hypertension.-Impact of exercise on cardiovascular risk factors: Dyslipidaemia.-Impact of exercise on cardiovascular risk factors: Diabetes mellitus.-Impact of exercise on cardiovascular risk factors: Obesity.-Exercise and vascular function.-The optimal dose of exercise.-PART IV: Exercise in secondary prevention and cardiac rehabilitation.-Modalities of exercise training in cardiac rehabilitation.-Cardiopulmonary exercise testing and prescription of exercise.-Exercise in specific diseases: Coronary artery disease.-Exercise in specific diseases: Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.-Exercise in specific diseases: Heart failure with reduced ejection fraction.-Exercise in specific diseases: Heart transplantation and left ventricular assist device.-Exercise in specific diseases: Valvular heart disease.-Exercise in specific diseases: Atrial fibrillation.-Exercise in Specific Diseases: Pacemakers and Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators.-Exercise in specific diseases: Abdominal aortic aneurysm