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What is sports cardiology?
Sports cardiology is the field of heart care related to professional and recreational athletes. It helps them stay active in sports and exercise.
The Sports Cardiology Service at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals is internationally renowned. It provides heart care for athletes of all ages – from adolescence to later life.
Our multidisciplinary team is composed of world-leading experts in cardiology, cardiac surgery, and medical imaging. They collaborate to diagnose and treat different heart conditions that can affect exercise performance.
These include:
- structural heart problems present at birth (congenital heart disease)
- electrical heart diseases, such as atrial fibrillation
- heart disease that appears later in life, such as coronary heart disease
- conditions that can put a strain on the heart, such as diabetes, hypercholesterolemia (high blood cholesterol) and hypertension (high blood pressure)
- diseases that affect the blood vessels of the body and prevent blood flowing as it should, called ‘vascular disease’
In addition to sports cardiologists, our team of experts include consultants in exercise respiratory physiology. This allows us to review heart and lung problems together in relation to exercise.
Our multidisciplinary team can help you reach your performance goals, whether in competitive sports or for leisure. We do this by carefully assessing your situation and developing a personalised treatment plan. This allows you to exercise safely and reach your performance goals.
Exercising with heart problems
Exercise has many well-recognised health benefits. It reduces the risk of heart problems and improves mental and physical wellbeing.
“Patients with existing heart problems are encouraged to exercise. Studies show it can help strengthen the heart and extend life expectancy,” explains Dr Sabiha Gati, consultant cardiologist and specialist in sports cardiology.
The European Society of Cardiology recommends that people with heart problems complete at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise each week. This is the same recommendations as for all healthy adults.
Moderate intensity exercise means increasing your heart and breathing rate but still being able to hold a conversation.
However, there is a very small risk that existing heart problems could trigger a sudden cardiac arrest. People that were previously sedentary (not physically active) and/or that have advanced heart disease are most at risk.
“For patients with heart disease, it is important to talk to your doctor before starting any kind of physical activity. This includes competitive exercise as well as leisurely activities. They will be able to assess the condition of your heart and guide on how to exercise safely,” explains Dr Gati.
Exercise has many well-recognised health benefits. It reduces the risk of heart problems and improves mental and physical wellbeing.
Heart screening for all types of athletes
Many professional athletes get their hearts checked regularly as part of their training. This lowers their risk of developing a serious problem while competing. However, people taking part in exercise for leisure – recreational athletes – may not necessarily get their hearts checked.
“Exercise can put a strain on the heart without appropriate preparation. This includes training for an endurance running event like a 5k run, playing tennis or swimming on weekends,” explains Dr Gati.
“For people that have an existing heart problem, their doctor is usually already advising them to ensure they are exercising safely. However, if people don’t know they have a heart problem, there could be a risk with exercise.”
Generally, people over the age of 40 are at risk of coronary heart disease. This is the most common cause of exercise-related heart problems. Unfortunately, they may not know they have it.
Risk factors for coronary heart disease include smoking, a family history of heart attacks and high blood cholesterol. It can also include conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure.
If you meet the criteria below, you may benefit from getting a private heart check with one of our sports cardiologists:
- You are over 35 with known heart disease and would like help in achieving your exercise performance goals.
- You are over 35 and would like to exercise more intensely but are at risk of heart disease. For example, you are smoker or former smoker, or have a sedentary lifestyle. High cholesterol or blood pressure, and conditions such as diabetes can also increase your risk
Our sports cardiologists also welcome professional athletes.
Many professional athletes get their hearts checked regularly as part of their training.
What does a sports cardiology assessment include?
Our sports cardiology assessments start with an initial consultation with one of our world-leading cardiologists. This helps them understand your level of heart risk during exercise.
An initial consultation costs £250.
If you require diagnostics tests for your heart following your initial consultation, these will be tailored to your needs. They can include:
- an electrocardiogram (ECG) to check the rhythm of your heart
- an echocardiogram (echo) which is an ultrasound scan to check the structures of your heart
- an exercise stress test which checks how your heart works during physical activity
- a cardiac MRI, which is a more detailed evaluation of your heart’s structures. This helps check if there is scarring in the heart muscle
Our sports cardiology service takes place at our Wimpole Street Outpatient and Diagnostic Centre on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons.
Locations
Our sports cardiology services is available at the following locations:
Explore our cardiology specialists
The sports cardiology cervice at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals is world-renowned. Our consultants provide heart care for competitive and recreational athletes of all ages – from adolescence to later in life.