A cross-sectional study for the relationship between body composition and body surface area with echocardiographic variables in endurance-trained athletes

Abstract

Aim. We ought to study the relationship between echocardiographic variables and body composition & body surface area in endurance trained athletes. Endurance training is associated with an increase in cardiac structural dimensions and mass in athletes. In other populations, body surface area was found to influence cardiac dimensions. We hypothesised that the increase in cardiac musculature dimensions observed with training may be a normal response to the increased training load and increased body surface area.
Materials and Methods. Fifty male endurance athletes (cycling, N=16; long distance running, N=22 and swimming, N=12) with eighteen male control subjects underwent echocardiography and dual photon x-ray absorptiometry body composition analysis. Correlation analysis was sought for echocardiographic variables and body surface area and body composition.
Results and conclusion. All subjects were in the age group of 18-25 years of age. The endurance athletes had enlarged cardiac dimensions than the control subjects (p<0.001). Left ventricular mass, size and thickness correlated significantly with the body surface area and lean mass but did not significantly relate to the body fat percentage and fat mass. Lean mass was found to be an independent predictor of left ventricular measurements.

Key words:

lean mass, echocardiography, body surface, endurance

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