[Sudden death (IV). Sudden death in the athlete. The minimal requirements before performing a competitive sport]

In our society, athletes project the ultimate image of well being in the health status spectrum. Though very uncommon, the sudden death of a young athlete has always great impact on the community and the athlete's surroundings (physicians, athletes, coaches, etc.). Due both to this and to the growing number of physical exercise practitioners, there is an increasing demand for more and precise information on the recommendations of participation in certain sports with the minimum possible risk. Together with the most recent and detailed statistics concerning the cardiovascular causes of sudden death in athletes, the objective of the present article is to review the present controversy regarding the preparticipation medical examination as a useful method to identify those athletes with greater potential risk, as well as to propose a few and simple recommendations concerning the tests that should be performed in each case.