SARS-CoV-2 Cardiac Involvement in Young Competitive Athletes

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Cardiac involvement is frequent in severe COVID-19 patients.
• The prevalence and implications of cardiac involvement in young athletes are not well-defined.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the prevalence of cardiac involvement in young competitive athletes after SARS-CoV-2 infection.
• To assess the clinical implications and diagnostic yield of cardiac testing in this population.

Main Methods:

• Prospective, multicenter observational cohort study of collegiate athletes in the US.
• Cardiac evaluation including ECG, troponin, echocardiography, and cardiac MRI for athletes testing positive for SARS-CoV-2.
• Analysis of prevalence, predictors, and adverse cardiovascular events.

Main Results:

• Among 3018 infected athletes, 0.7% showed definite, probable, or possible cardiac involvement.
• Clinically indicated cardiac MRI had a higher diagnostic yield (12.6%) than primary screening MRI (3.0%).
• Cardiopulmonary symptoms and abnormal initial cardiac tests predicted involvement; adverse cardiac events were rare (0.03%).

Conclusions:

• SARS-CoV-2 infection in young competitive athletes is associated with low cardiac involvement prevalence.
• Short-term follow-up reveals a low risk of clinical cardiovascular events.