Report from ECR: Delayed-enhancement MR saves senior marathon runners from lethal lap

March 11, 2008

Report from ECR: Delayed-enhancement MR saves senior marathon runners from lethal lap
H. A. Abella
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Marathon runners 50 years or older may face a higher than expected risk of sudden cardiovascular accidents. MR imaging with late gadolinium enhancement may help identify these athletes in time to keep them from potentially deadly episodes, according to German researchers reporting at the 2008 European Congress of Radiology in Vienna.

Regular physical exercise reduces cardiovascular mortality. Paradoxically, however, studies confirm that vigorous physical exertion also boosts the risk of sudden cardiac death. The risk increases with age, but no reliable indicators can help pinpoint which athletes face the worst odds. MRI of the myocardium with late gadolinium enhancement could offer some athletes in specific demographics a reliable assessment of the likelihood of myocardial disease, said principal investigator Dr. Frank Breuckmann from the West German Heart Center at the University of Essen.

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