Abstract

By the analysis of the scientific literature, the authors deal with a difficult subject: the opportuneness of allowing sports activity in children and adolscent affected by congenital or acquired heart diseases. In the opinion ofthe authors, sports activities in children with cardiac diseases are not necessarily forbidden providing that particular attention has been paid to thefollowing methodological aspects: 1) to make an accurate definition of the nature and haemodynamic condition of heart disease by non-invasive andor invasive techniques; 2) to obtain a reliable evaluation of physical capacity in every subject. Cardiac diseases with slight or moderate haemodynamic involvement, congenital (slight pulmonary or artic stenosis, interatrial and interventricular defects with minimal or moderate right to left shunts and normal pulmonary pressures), or acquired (rheumatic valvular defects with no or minimal haemodynamic impairment and without any signs of rheumatic activity), are compatible with a physical activity of playful-rehabilitating type. Verf.-Referat (gekuerzt)