The paradox of endurance training: higher coronary plaque prevalence found in lifelong athletes

Summary: The Master@Heart study aimed to investigate the relationship between lifelong endurance exercise and coronary atherosclerosis measured by computed tomography coronary angiography (CTCA) in a cohort of 191 lifelong master endurance athletes, 191 late-onset athletes, and 176 healthy non-athletes. All participants were male with a low cardiovascular risk profile.

The study found that lifelong endurance sport participation was not associated with a more favorable coronary plaque composition compared to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. In fact, lifelong endurance athletes exhibited a higher prevalence of coronary plaques, including more non-calcified plaques in proximal segments, than fit and healthy individuals with a similarly low cardiovascular risk profile.

Further research is needed to understand how these findings on CTCA might translate into clinical events in endurance athletes.

Article: Lifelong endurance exercise and its relation with coronary atherosclerosis – European Heart Journal

Commentaries:

Lifelong Endurance Exercise and Coronary Atherosclerosis – American College of Cardiology

MASTER@HEART: Long-term Endurance Athletes Not Immune to Atherosclerosis – TCTMD