Serum ferritin distribution in elite athletes

Area of Science:

• Sports Medicine
• Nutritional Science
• Human Physiology

Background:

• Iron deficiency is common in athletes, but its prevalence compared to the general population is debated.
• Routine screening for suboptimal iron status in elite athletes is not universally established.
• Understanding serum ferritin (SF) distribution in athletes is crucial for optimizing performance and health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the distribution of serum ferritin (SF) levels in a cohort of elite athletes.
• To compare SF levels in elite athletes with published data from the normal population.
• To assess the prevalence of iron deficiency and the need for treatment initiation in athletes.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective cohort study design.
• Analysis of electronic health records from 1085 elite adult athletes (570 women, 515 men) between 2012-2017.
• Comparison of athlete SF values against normal population data and examination of iron deficiency criteria.

Main Results:

• Male athletes exhibited significantly lower SF distributions compared to normal males across age groups (p<0.001).
• SF distributions in female athletes were similar to normal women across age groups (p>0.05).
• 15% of male athletes and 52% of female athletes presented with suboptimal iron status (SF < 35 ng/ml).

Conclusions:

• Elite male athletes demonstrate a significantly lower population distribution of SF values than healthy males.
• While SF values in elite female athletes did not differ from population norms, approximately half were iron deficient.
• These findings support the consideration of routine iron screening for both male and female elite athletes.