Myocardial Work Index in Professional Football Players: A Novel Method for Assessment of Cardiac Adaptation.

BACKGROUND: The global myocardial work index (GWI), a novel, valid, and non-invasive method based on speckle-tracking echocardiography, could provide value for calculating left ventricular (LV) function and energy consumption in athletes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We prospectively analyzed a single-center cohort of Spanish First-Division football players who attended a pre-participation screening program from June 2020 to June 2021, compared to a control group. All the individuals underwent an electrocardiogram and echocardiography, including two-dimensional speckle tracking and 4D-echo. The study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of myocardial work in professional football players and its correlations with other echocardiographic parameters. RESULTS: The study population comprised 97 individuals (49 professional players and 48 controls). The mean age was 30.48 ± 7.20 years old. The professional football players had significantly higher values of LVEDV (p < 0.001), LVESV (p < 0.001), LV-mass index (p = 0.011), PWTd (p = 0.023), and EA (p < 0.001) compared with the control group. In addition, the professional players had lower GCW (p = 0.003) and a tendency to show lower GWI values (p < 0.001). These findings could suggest that professional football players have more remodeling and less MW, related to their adaptation to intensive training. Significant differences in GLS (p = 0.01) and GWE (p = 0.04) were observed as a function of the septal thickness of the athletes. Irrespective of the MW variable, the parameters with better correlations across all the populations were SBP, DBP, and GLS. CONCLUSIONS: The GWI is a novel index to assess cardiac performance, with less load dependency than strain measurements. Future GWI analyses are warranted to understand myocardial deformation and other pathological differential diagnoses.

El índice neutrófilo/linfocito como marcador de disfunción sistémica endotelial en sujetos asintomáticos / The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a marker of systemic endothelial dysfunction in asymptomatic subjects

Fundamento y objetivo: El índice neutrófilo/linfocito es un marcador inflamatorio de valor pronóstico en enfermedades cardiovasculares. El objetivo del presente trabajo es valorar la asociación entre el índice neutrófilo/linfocito y la alteración del cociente albúmina/creatinina urinario como marcador precoz de disfunción endotelial sistémica asociada a enfermedad microvascular y riesgo cardiovascular, en sujetos asintomáticos. Materiales y métodos: Se realizó un estudio transversal en 1.816 sujetos asintomáticos. Se excluyó del a estudio aquellos pacientes que presentaron antecedentes de enfermedad cardiovascular, los que recibían tratamiento con fármacos antiproteinúricos (inhibidores de la enzima conversora de angiotensina y antagonistas de los receptores de la angiotensina II) y aquellos que presentaron un cociente albúmina/creatinina superior a 300mg/dL. La variable desenlace del estudio fue la alteración del cociente albúmina/creatinina urinario. Resultados: El índice neutrófilo/linfocito resultó significativamente asociado a la alteración del cociente albúmina/creatinina urinario, tanto en el estudio univariante como en el multivariante, independientemente de otros cofactores como la edad, la hipertensión arterial, la diabetes, la dislipidemia o el filtrado glomerular patológico. El análisis de la sensibilidad y la especificidad de distintos niveles del índice neutrófilo/linfocito permitió generar 3 grupos de riesgo de alteración del cociente albúmina/creatina urinario: riesgo bajo con un cociente neutrófilo/linfocito < 1,5, riesgo intermedio con cociente neutrófilo/linfocito entre 1,5 y 3 y riesgo alto con un cociente neutrófilo/linfocito > 3. La proporción relativa de alteración del cociente albúmina/creatinina urinario, en los 3 grupos de riesgo, aumentaba en razón del valor del índice neutrófilo/linfocito de forma independiente al resto de cofactores. Conclusiones: El índice neutrófilo/linfocito surge como un potencial marcador de disfunción endotelial sistémica económico, rápido, no invasivo e independiente de otros factores conocidos, en sujetos asintomáticos (AU)

Background and objective: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio has demonstrated to be a prognostic inflammatory marker in cardiovascular disease. The objective of this study is to evaluate the association between neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and pathologic urinary albumin/creatinine ratio as an early marker of cardiovascular risk and systemic endothelial dysfunction, associated with microvascular disease, in asymptomatic subjects. Materials and methods: A unicenter cross-sectional study was conducted, including 1816 asymptomatic subjects. Patients with previous cardiovascular disease, those who were treated with ACE inhibitors and/or angiotensin II receptor blockers and patients with albumin/creatinine ratio over 300mg/g were excluded. The outcome of the study was the presence of a pathologic urinary albumin/creatinine ratio. Results: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio was significantly associated with altered urinary albumin/creatinine ratio in the univariate analysis and after adjustment for other known endothelial and cardiovascular risk factors (age, hypertension, dyslipidaemia, diabetes or altered glomerular filtration rate). Based on the sensitivity and specificity of different neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio thresholds, 3 risk groups were created for altered urinary albumin/creatinine ratio: low risk in those with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio < 1.5, intermediate risk in patients between 1.5 and 3, and high risk in those with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio > 3. These groups were found to have a statistically significant and independent prognostic power for altered urinary albumin/creatinine ratio in asymptomatic patients. Conclusions: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio appears to be a cost-efficient, non-invasive and independent potential marker of systemic endothelial dysfunction in asymptomatic subjects (AU)

The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a marker of systemic endothelial dysfunction in asymptomatic subjects. / El índice neutrófilo/linfocito como marcador de disfunción sistémica endotelial en sujetos asintomáticos.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio has demonstrated to be a prognostic inflammatory marker in cardiovascular disease. The objective of this study is to evaluate the association between neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and pathologic urinary albumin/creatinine ratio as an early marker of cardiovascular risk and systemic endothelial dysfunction, associated with microvascular disease, in asymptomatic subjects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A unicenter cross-sectional study was conducted, including 1816 asymptomatic subjects. Patients with previous cardiovascular disease, those who were treated with ACE inhibitors and/or angiotensin II receptor blockers and patients with albumin/creatinine ratio over 300mg/g were excluded. The outcome of the study was the presence of a pathologic urinary albumin/creatinine ratio. RESULTS: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio was significantly associated with altered urinary albumin/creatinine ratio in the univariate analysis and after adjustment for other known endothelial and cardiovascular risk factors (age, hypertension, dyslipidaemia, diabetes or altered glomerular filtration rate). Based on the sensitivity and specificity of different neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio thresholds, 3 risk groups were created for altered urinary albumin/creatinine ratio: low risk in those with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio < 1.5, intermediate risk in patients between 1.5 and 3, and high risk in those with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio > 3. These groups were found to have a statistically significant and independent prognostic power for altered urinary albumin/creatinine ratio in asymptomatic patients. CONCLUSIONS: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio appears to be a cost-efficient, non-invasive and independent potential marker of systemic endothelial dysfunction in asymptomatic subjects.