I just saw this on Fox Sports News:www.voanews.com/english/2007-11-03-voa15.cfm

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...&refer=home

Ryan Shay, a four-time national distance-running champion, died today shortly after the 5-mile mark of the U.S. Olympic Team marathon trials in Central Park in New York. He was 28.

What a loss to his friends and family. I read that he was known to have an enlarged heart. I've been thinking about this all week... has anyone had their heart checked to see if it's more likely to fail under stress? Is their such a test?

I read that he died of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy which wasn't detected because it is difficult to differentiate from an athlete's enlarged heart. I don't know what this actually means though, maybe DrJH can interpret for us?

I've heard that around 1 in 200 people could be born with a certain genetic heart condition called hypertrophic cardiomypathy. Which is recommended that anyone thinking of exercising seriously should see a heart specialist as a heart attack can be triggered when exercising near maximum levels. I am sure a heart specialist can tell you if there are any abnormalities with a heart scan, EPS or trailed under a stress test.
Even fit athletes are not safe from a heart attack more so when exercising at or near maximun levels when the stroke volume is decrease due to a rapid heart rate.

I am looking forward to some answers & information in regard to the athletes heart at the following seminar: http://www.coolrunning.com.au/forums/index...ost&id=1194

I read that he died of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy which wasn't detected because it is difficult to differentiate from an athlete's enlarged heart. I don't know what this actually means though, maybe DrJH can interpret for us?


The left ventricle (big chamber for pumping blood out into the systemic circulation) becomes enlarged. The main difference between the two conditions is:

1. Athlete's Heart: Left ventricle increases in size by increasing the thickness of the muscle wall. This should result in a stronger heart beat and increased cardiac output with each beat. This is the main reason we see a lowered resting heart rate after chronic endurance training.

2. Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: The heart struggles to meet the demands of the body and blood kind of pools in the left ventricle which stretoches the chamber over time. This results in a big, floppy heart that often progresses to heart failure.

They are often difficult to differentiate on an ECG because the electrics of the heart are altered in a similar fashion, both simply showing that the left ventricle is bigger than usual. The are differences that can be seen, but you need to be a cardiologist to know what to look for.