[Causes of sudden cardiac death in athletes]

Sudden cardiac death in athletes is a growing problem, despite the huge existing knowledge in medicine and sports.

In response to vigorous physical activity, the body undergoes profound morphologic and functional changes. These changes are usually healthy, but sometimes may gravitate to some cardiac diseases. But still, most saudden cardiac deaths are due to previous unknown diseases.

The most common cause of sudden cardiac death in athletes is hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Other reasons are congenital coronary artery anomalies, nivocarditis, dilatative cardiomyopathy, arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy of the right ventricle, sarcoidosis, mitral valve prolapse, aortic valve stenosis, atherosclerosis, long QT syndrome, and blunt impact to the chest.

Bearing in mind the above mentioned, more frequent physical examinations of athletes are recommended.