Sports cardiology is a field of medical science that focuses primarily on cardiovascular diseases in athletes or physically active individuals. Sports cardiologists are health care specialists who care for athletes with the aim of keeping them active in sports. Sports cardiologists are highly trained in caring for athletes with known or completely unknown heart diseases.
What do they do?
Sports cardiologists are highly trained in the diagnosis, management and treatment of almost any heart disease. They perform a number of diagnostic procedures to diagnose any heart disease or problem so that the athlete can perform well in the sport. They also require special expertise and understanding of the athlete’s psychology and the physical demands of the sport. The sports cardiology team includes pediatricians, especially for congenital heart disease and inherited diseases, cardiovascular imagers, electro physiologists, heart failure specialists and exercise physiologists. Sports cardiologists in Amritsar provides treatments to help athletes play consistently regardless of their heart health. Sports cardiologist has many sub-specialties such as,
- Heart failure cardiologist – A heart failure cardiologist specializes in treating patients with heart failure or heart attack and ensures comprehensive management of their health as other organ systems are affected in heart failure.
- Imaging Cardiologist – An imaging cardiologist specializes in various imaging procedures to diagnose a wide range of heart diseases. This includes reading and interpreting the results of a cardiac echocardiogram, cardiac CT scan images, MRI scans, and cardiac stress tests. They test and diagnose athletes before any sporting event.
- Pediatric Cardiologist – A pediatric cardiologist is involved in helping children with heart problems. They help children to participate in sports and perform well.
- Non-invasive cardiologist – A non-invasive cardiologist specializes in a wide range of cardiology procedures that do not involve heart surgery. Their responsibility is primarily to assist patients in preventing, diagnosing and managing any potential heart problems. They perform many test procedures such as echogram, ECG, heart test and nuclear test. Nuclear testing is a special procedure where a stream of radioactive dye is injected into the patient’s bloodstream and the resulting heart map is photographed.
What conditions do they treat?
Sports cardiologists treat a variety of conditions before and during any sports event. They specialize in various non-surgical procedures to treat, prevent or manage any heart disease during sports and help athletes perform well. Some of the most common heart diseases they treat include,
- Cardiovascular disease. It develops a cause of build-up plaque in the blood vessels that supply blood to other parts of the body. This can cause the blood vessels to harden and constrict. The most common cause of this condition is high cholesterol levels in the body.
- Congenital heart defect. These are the types of heart defects a person is born with. This can happen at the stage of development of the heart in newborns during pregnancy. There are several types of congenital heart defects, including:
- abnormal heart valve
- septal defect
- atresia
- Arrhythmia is a range of conditions related to problems with the heartbeat. It can make the heartbeat slower or faster. There are some types of arrhythmia,
- Tachycardia
- Bradycardia
- Premature contraction
- Atrial fibrillation
- Dilated cardiomyopathy. It is a condition when the muscles of the heart stretch and become thinner. In that situation, it can be difficult for the heart to pump blood to the other body parts. It can also be a reason for a heart attack.
- Mitral valve regurgitation. It is a condition in which mitral valves present in the heart don’t work properly. It can cause blood to flow back into the heart, which can put pressure on the heart and result in heart failure.
- High blood pressure (HTN) is the most common cardiovascular condition in the healthy athletic population. High blood pressure puts pressure on your heart and makes it difficult for it to pump your blood. Your heart muscles can become thick and weak and even lead to heart failure. High blood pressure caused by high blood pressure can also cause the walls of your blood vessels to thicken. High blood pressure can become more dangerous when cholesterol accumulates inside the blood vessels. It can block arteries and lead to conditions like coronary artery disease which can put athletes at risk of heart attack or cardiac arrest.
Sports cardiologists in Amritsar treats some of the most serious heart conditions such as a heart attack or cardiac arrest, which are considered medical emergencies and require immediate treatment to the patient.