Table 2. Demographic, Electrocardiographic, Echocardiographic, and Functional Characteristics in Male and Female Paralympic Athletes With Respect to Type of Sport.
| Characteristic | Median (interquartile range) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male athletes (n = 188) | Female athletes (n = 64) | |||||
| Nonendurance (n = 136) | Endurance (n = 52) | P value | Nonendurance (n = 40) | Endurance (n = 24) | P value | |
| Age, y | 34 (30-39) | 34 (29-41) | .82 | 35 (28-43) | 33 (21-42) | .28 |
| Body surface area, m2 | 1.9 (1.8-2.0) | 1.8 (1.7-1.9) | .04 | 1.6 (1.5-1.7) | 1.6 (1.5-1.7) | .51 |
| Blood pressure, mm Hg | ||||||
| Systolic | 120 (120-130) | 120 (120-125) | .34 | 120 (110-125) | 110 (106-115) | .03 |
| Diastolic | 80 (75-85) | 80 (70-80) | .05 | 75 (70-80) | 70 (70-80) | .65 |
| Heart rate, bpm | 67 (60-75) | 55 (51-63) | <.001 | 69 (60-76) | 65 (56-68) | .08 |
| Sinus bradycardia (heart rate <60 bpm), No. (%) | 29 (21.3) | 30 (57.7) | <.001 | 10 (25) | 7 (29.2) | .77 |
| Electrocardiogram findings, No. (%) | ||||||
| Training associated | 29 (21.3) | 30 (57.7) | <.001 | 10 (25) | 8 (33.3) | .39 |
| Borderline | 2 (1.5) | 3 (5.8) | .05 | 0 | 1 (4.2) | .38 |
| Abnormal | 8 (5.9) | 3 (5.8) | >.99 | 7 (17.5) | 1 (4.2) | .24 |
| LV end-diastolic diameter, mm | 50.0 (48.1-53.0) | 53.5 (51.0-55.7) | <.001 | 45.0 (43.3-49.0) | 47.0 (44.5-49.0) | .17 |
| LV end-systolic diameter, mm | 32.0 (29.0-34.2) | 33.5 (30.0-36) | .001 | 28.5 (26.1-31.4) | 26.5 (25.0-31.4) | .45 |
| Septal LV thickness, mm | 9 (9-10) | 10 (9-11) | <.001 | 8 (8-9) | 8.0 (8.0-9.0) | .66 |
| LV posterior wall, mm | 9 (9.0-9.7) | 10 (9-10) | <.001 | 8 (7.2-8.7) | 8.0 (7.2-9.0) | .86 |
| Relative wall thickness ratio | 0.36 (0.34-0.38) | 0.37 (0.35-0.38) | .07 | 0.36 (0.33-0.38) | 0.35 (0.33-0.37) | .28 |
| LV mass index, g/m2 | 88.4 (75.6-97.4) | 109.3 (93.7-119.3) | <.001 | 72.0 (65.1-85.4) | 79.4 (71.5-89.3) | .16 |
| LV mass, g | 163.6 (139.9-188.3) | 199.3 (164.4-225.2) | <.001 | 121.8 (96.3-143.2) | 124.5 (108.5-146.8) | .57 |
| Left atrium, mm | 35.0 (32.1-37.4) | 36.1 (33.2-40.1) | .03 | 31.2 (29.2-34.7) | 33.2 (31.2-36.0) | .10 |
| Aortic root, mm | 32 (30-34) | 33 (31-36) | .03 | 28 (26-29) | 27 (25-30) | .68 |
| Pulsed-wave Doppler | ||||||
| E wave, cm/s | 74.1 (64.2-88.2) | 75.0 (65.1-86.0) | .95 | 83.0 (75.0-91.2) | 86.5 (73.7-105.2) | .11 |
| A wave, cm/s | 56.0 (48.3-64.0) | 50.1 (45.2-56.0) | .006 | 56.0 (45.7-66.2) | 64.5 (53.0-84.1) | .91 |
| E:A ratio | 1.36 (1.1-1.6) | 1.78 (1.4-2.1) | .02 | 1.36 (1.1-1.9) | 1.85 (1.6-2.3) | .14 |
| Tissue Doppler imaging, cm/s | ||||||
| E wave | 11.5 (9.5-13.8) | 11.5 (9.3-14.0) | .95 | 12.2 (10.7-13.8) | 12.3 (10.9-13.9) | .99 |
| A wave | 9.6 (8.3-10.6) | 9.3 (8.1-10.3) | .09 | 9.0 (8.1-11.3) | 9.0 (8.1-11.4) | .36 |
| S wave | 8.9 (7.8-10.3) | 8.8 (7.8-10.4) | .23 | 8.7 (7.8-9.2) | 8.5 (7.8-9.1) | .44 |
| E:E' ratio | 7.8 (6.5-10.1) | 7.55 (6.5-10.2) | .41 | 8.6 (8.1-11.3) | 8.1 (6.2-10.2) | .14 |
| Ejection fraction, % | 64 (60-70) | 65 (60-68) | .94 | 67 (63-70) | 66 (62-70) | .63 |
| Maximum workload, W | 127.5 (100.2-153.0) | 220.2 (166.1-300.0) | <.001 | 70.0 (56.5-82.4) | 151.0 (95.4-220.0) | <.001 |
| Maximum workload index, W/kg | 1.8 (1.4-2.1) | 3.0 (2.5-4.1) | <.001 | 1.2 (1.0-1.5) | 2.4 (1.7-4.1) | <.001 |
| Peak VO2, L/min × kg | 31.7 (25.4-36.1) | 49.0 (42.7-62.1) | <.001 | 23.6 (20.3-26.5) | 39.4 (31.8-48.7) | <.001 |
| Peak heart rate, bpm | 177 (164-184) | 179 (164-185) | .43 | 174 (157-182) | 174 (167-186) | .35 |
| Peak blood pressure, mm Hg | ||||||
| Systolic | 170 (150-174) | 180 (160-190) | .03 | 158.5 (150-170) | 170 (160-185) | .002 |
| Diastolic | 80 (70-80) | 80 (70-85) | .95 | 77 (70-80) | 75 (70-90) | .65 |
Abbreviations: A max, late (atrial) diastolic peak flow-velocity; A wave, late diastolic relaxation peak velocity; LV, left ventricular; E max, early diastolic peak flow velocity; E:A ratio, ratio of the early to late diastolic peak flow velocities; E wave, early diastolic relaxation peak velocity; S wave, systolic peak velocity.