The original articles included in the present book have primarily been taken from papers presented at the International Advanced Course, more precise the Master on Sports Cardiology, held in Rome from November 27 to December 15 1995 at the School of Sport and Institute of Sport Sciences of the Italian National Olympic Committee. The contributions, written by internationally acknowledged scientists, appeared after extensive and careful revision by the Authors, and represent current and highly profitable scientific material. The incentive to publish this work came from Springer-Verlag, a renowned publi sher, and the articles have been compiled in Advances in Sports Cardiology. The present volume is an easy-to-consult, comprehensive and up-to-date refe rence. Possible future developments in cardiovascular evaluation in athletes have been covered, too. The cardiological evaluation of athletes represents a more than 30 years-old discipline in"Italy, with legal implications, which compel physicians in this field to investigate in each individual athlete the possible, innermost causes of cardiovascular abnormality and to express a circumstantial prognostic asses sment. Cardiologists in this field should have an extensive background in phy siology but should also be aware of the indications and limits of the instrumen tal diagnostic procedures used in clinical practice as well as of the distinction between normal physiological adaptation to exercise and training and a true pathological cardiac process. Hence, sound basis in physiology with a major interest in clinical practice distinguishes sports cardiology as a new and origi nal discipline.

The Impact of Sports Cardiology on Clinical Practice

Cardiovascular Response and Adaptation to Exercise
Functional Evaluation in Sports Cardiology
Cardiovascular Adjustments in Wheelchair Paraplegic Athletes (WPA)
Determinants and Physiological Limits of Cardiac Morphologic Adaptation in Elite Athletes
Significance and Prognostic Evaluation of Bradyarrhythmias in Athletes
Prognostic Evaluation of Supraventricular Arrhythmias in Athletes
Prognostic Evaluation of Ventricular Arrhythmias in Athletes
Radiofrequency Ablation in the Therapy of Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome
The Long QT Syndrome
Current Criteria for Evaluation of Athletes with Arrhythmias
Congenital Heart Disease of Interest in Athletes
Mitral Valve Prolapse: Criteria of Prognostic Evaluation in Athletes
Cardiomyopathies, Myocarditis and Sport
Pathology of Cardiac Diseases at Risk of Sudden Death in Athletes
Methods for Distinguishing Athlete's Heart from Structural Heart Disease, with Emphasis on Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
Sudden Cardiac Death in Competitive Athletes
Physical Exercise and Ischemic Heart Disease
Electrocardiographic Repolarization Abnormalities in Athletes
Arterial Hypertension and Physical Activity
Arterial and Venous Diseases in Athletes
Noncardiac Diseases Mimicking and/or Affecting the Cardiovascular System
IOC Banned Drugs and their Effects on the Cardiovascular System
Legal Implications of the Cardiovascular Evaluation of Athletes.