Electro- and echocardiographic study of the left ventricle in man after training

Fourteen sedentary middle-aged men underwent a chest X-ray, a 12 lead ECG, a VCG, and an echocardiographic examination prior to and following 5 months of training a moderately severe intensity, on a cycle ergometer. No modification in the X-ray cardiac profile was observed following training. Some electrocardiographic (R wave amplitude in V5 and V6 and Sokolow index: SV1 + RV5 or V6) and vectorcardiographic (maximal QRS vector amplitude, maximal spatial QRS vector, and R wave amplitude) indices of left ventricular hypertrophy were slightly but significantly increased following training. The echocardiographic measurements in diastole (septal and posterior wall thickness, left ventricular internal diameter, and left ventricular mass) were unchanged after training. Results suggest that electrical changes may not provide adequate indications of left ventricular morphological modifications. The lack of echocardiographic evidences of left ventricular hypertrophy suggest that: (1) training does not necessarily induce left ventricular hypertrophy; (2) the large heart sometimes observed in athletes may be the result of a genetic factor or of a prolonged and very intensive training pursued since a very young age, over a number of years; and (3) left ventricular enlargement probably plays a minor role in the increase in aerobic capacity following training.