2. Sharma et al.
Study question: High-endurance sports training may cause increased left ventricular wall thickness and may conflict with the diagnosis of hypertrophic cardiomyop¬athy. Information on echocardiographic dimensions in athletes age 14–18 is lacking. What echocardiographic measurement of hypertrophy would be considered impor¬tant for the diagnosis of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in young athletes?
Methods: Included were 720 elite athletes, (75% male, age 15–16) participating in endurance sports and 250 healthy sedentary control individuals who underwent echocardiography.
Results: Compared to controls, athletes had greater absolute left ventricular wall thickness (LVWT). No female athlete had an LVWT greater than 11 mm and only 3 trained male athletes had an absolute thickness greater than 12 mm. Each of the 38 athletes with LVWT exceeding predicted limits also showed enlarged left ventricular cavity dimensions of 50–60 mm.
Conclusions: Trained young athletes show greater absolute LVWT compared with non-athletes. Only a small proportion of athletes exhibited an LVWT exceeding upper limits, very rarely greater than 12 mm, and then always accompanied with left or right ventricular chamber enlargement. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, however, should be considered strongly in any trained young male athlete with an LVWT of greater than 12 mm and (females greater than 11 mm), and with a nondilated left ventricle.

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