P307Magnetic resonance, electroanatomical mapping, and endomyocardial biopsy to solve the diagnostic and sport eligibility dilemma in a cohort of competitive athletes with ventricular arrhythmias
Authors: Dello Russo A , Gasperetti A , Riva S , Dessanai M , Pizzamiglio F , Casella M , Chihade F , Catto V , Majocchi B , Zucchetti M , Ribatti V , Andreini D , Basso C , Zeppilli P , Tondo C 
Published: October 2019

Background

Ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) are a frequent finding in agonist athletes (athl) at routine sport medicine visits. VAs impact on sport eligibility, their management, and the sudden arrhythmic death risk evaluation in athletes currently represents one of the greatest challenges across both the cardiology and sport medicine field.

Purpose

To describe how an advanced multi-methodical evaluation allowed diagnosis, risk stratification, targeted therapy and sport eligibility reassessment in a competitive athl cohort with ventricular arrhythmias and pathological findings at magnetic resonance (MR).

Methods

All consecutive competitive athl with denied sport eligibility due to ventricular arrhythmias that underwent an advanced invasive evaluation at our institute were enrolled.

A baseline and stress ECG, and late gadolinium enhanced evaluation (LGE) at MR were performed prior to invasive evaluation in all athl.

Invasive evaluation performed in all athl comprised of an electrophysiological study (EPS) to assess arrhythmic inducibility, an endo-cavitary electro-anatomical mapping (EAM), and a EAM and MR guided endo-myocardial biopsy (EMB). A defined diagnosis was postulated in all cases, specific therapeutic interventions were started and sport eligibility status reassessed after 6 months from discharge.

Results

Thirty-two competitive athl were enrolled in our study (32±6 y.o.; 77% male; 4±1 1h-training session/week); 26 (81%) athl practiced a mixed aerobic-anaerobic, 5 (16%) a pure-aerobic, while only 1 (3%) a pure anaerobic sport.

Arrhythmic presentation leading to sport eligibility revoke was: in 13 (40%) athl frequent (>2000/day) premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) at rest, in 2 (6%) PVCs during stress ECG, in 6 (18%) non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (VT), in 8 (25%) sustained VT, and in 3 (11%) ventricular fibrillation/cardiac arrest during sport practice.

MR alterations were described in all cases, and LGE at MR was found in 31 (87%) athl; a definite radiological diagnosis was obtained in 13 (40%) athl.

A normal myocardium at EMB was found only in 3 (8%) pts; in 15 (45%) a leukocyte infiltrate pattern compatible with myocarditis, in 11 (39%) fibro-fatty replacement, in 2 (5%) a mitochondrial disease and in 1 (3%) a sarcoidosis were proven, and diagnosis were consequently postulated.

EPS showed complex VAs inducibility in 8 (25%) cases, while a trans catheter ablation was performed in 10 (31%) athl. A total of 9 (28%) implantable cardioverter devices (ICDs) were implanted, for primary or secondary prevention.

According to invasive diagnostic findings and sport medicine guidelines, 8 (25%) athl had their sport eligibility statuts re-instated.

Conclusion

An invasive multi-methodical assessment allowed in all cases to reach a diagnosis and to start a targeted therapy in a cohort of competitive athl with VA and a pathological MR, granting in a significant (25%) percentage sport eligibility status re-instatement.