Abstract des Autors

Brugada syndrome (SB) is a recently acquired clinical condition, brought about by mutations of SCN5A gene, which codifies the cardiac sodium channel. SB is a hereditary arrhythmic disease, characterized by episodes of polymorphic ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation which may cause heart failure and sudden death in apparently healthy subjects, without any heart structural anomaly. SB shows a typical electrocardiographic pattern, characterized by right bundle branch block and ST segment elevation in right precordial leads V1-V3; for its efficacy and efficiency the main diagnostic instrument is represented by ECG with 12 leads. Because of the incomplete knowledge of this disease, up till now it is difficult to establish its prevalence in the population. The aim of this work has been to inquire into any probable presence of SB in a group of 1871 agonistic athletes through the exam of electrocardiograms effected during the medical examination for the sport activity fitness. The typical electrooardiographic-pattern, to be ascribed to SB, wasn't found in any graphic; in 3 graphics were found some alterations and it should be convenient to go further into them. In these cases, before effecting any pharmacological test to identify the frustre forms of SB giving, also if it's risky, ajmalina or flecainide, in our opinion it should be convenient to make an ECG-Holter with non-stop recording of 12 standard leads/24 h. Considering the specific body of legislation in force in Italy about the sanitary protection of the athletes, which also provides for the electrocardiogram, we think that the work developed at the Operative Units of Sport Medicine of Sanitary Companies can have a fundamental role in the acquisition of scientific data about SB and in particular about the prevalence of this disease in our country; it should therefore be convenient to found in every region a scientific Regional Observatory for SB, in which all these data can be found.