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Research ArticleOriginal Article
Open Access

Echocardiographic dimensions and maximal oxygen uptake in elite soccer players

Hazzaa M. Al-Hazzaa and Andrew C. Chukwuemeka
Saudi Medical Journal April 2001, 22 (4) 320-325;
Hazzaa M. Al-Hazzaa
Exercise Physiology Laboratory, King Saud University, PO Box 9792, Riyadh 11423, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Fax. +966 (1) 4684121.
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Andrew C. Chukwuemeka
Sports Medicine Hospital, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To assess cardiac dimensions in elite Saudi soccer players, and to correlate these measurements with maximal oxygen uptake.

METHODS: Twenty-three soccer players representing the Saudi National soccer team, and 19 untrained males participated in this study. Cardiac dimensions were measured by M-mode echocardiography, and maximal oxygen uptake was assessed by open-circuit spirometry during treadmill running.

RESULTS: When compared with age-matched untrained males, soccer players appeared to have significantly (P<0.05) greater values (mm.m-2) in left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (28.8 ± 2.7 vs 26.5 ± 2.3), right ventricular cavity (14.1 ± 2.5 vs 11.8 ± 2.6), left atrial cavity (16.7 ± 1.6 vs 14.9 ± 2.2) and left ventricular mass (117.4 ± 21.2 vs 89.0 ± 16.0 g.m-2). There was no significant difference between the 2 groups in left ventricular posterior wall (5.3 ± 0.77 vs 5.3 ± 0.61) or in interventricular septum (5.5 ± 0.65 vs 5.2 ± 0.59). When soccer players were grouped by playing position, there were no significant differences in cardiac dimensions between the players, though the midfielders and the full-backs showed the highest values for left ventricular cavity and maximal oxygen uptake. Further, maximal oxygen uptake relative to body mass (ml.kg.-1 min-1) exhibited a significant correlation with left ventricular cavity normalized to either body mass (r = 0.62; P <0.01), or to body surface area (r = 0.53; P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION: The elite Saudi soccer players appear to have significantly greater left ventricular cavity and mass than age-matched untrained males. Such cardiac adaptation seems to result from the highly dynamic nature of the soccer game.

  • Copyright: © Saudi Medical Journal

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Saudi Medical Journal: 22 (4)
Saudi Medical Journal
Vol. 22, Issue 4
1 Apr 2001
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Echocardiographic dimensions and maximal oxygen uptake in elite soccer players
Hazzaa M. Al-Hazzaa, Andrew C. Chukwuemeka
Saudi Medical Journal Apr 2001, 22 (4) 320-325;

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Echocardiographic dimensions and maximal oxygen uptake in elite soccer players
Hazzaa M. Al-Hazzaa, Andrew C. Chukwuemeka
Saudi Medical Journal Apr 2001, 22 (4) 320-325;
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© 2025 Saudi Medical Journal Saudi Medical Journal is copyright under the Berne Convention and the International Copyright Convention.  Saudi Medical Journal is an Open Access journal and articles published are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (CC BY-NC). Readers may copy, distribute, and display the work for non-commercial purposes with the proper citation of the original work. Electronic ISSN 1658-3175. Print ISSN 0379-5284.

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