Report of the NASPE policy conference on arrhythmias and the athlete

Arrhythmias and the Athlete. Introduction: This consensus statement summari zes the proceedings of The Expert Consensus Conference on Arrhythmias in th e Athlete of the North American Society of Pacing and Electrophysiology (NA SPE) on detecting, evaluating, and treating athletes with cardiovascular di sorders that predispose to cardiac arrhythmias. Methods and Results: The participants in the open policy conference were se lected by the codirectors (Drs. Estes and Olshansky) based on expertise and contributions to the literature. All participants provided a referenced su mmary of their presentation. The writing group used the information from al l published scientific studies, clinical trials, registries, clinical exper ience, and expert opinion to make recommendations regarding screening, eval uation, management, eligibility for competition, and a range of other medic al, social, and legal issues regarding the recreational and competitive ath lete. The codirectors of the symposium synthesized the participants' report s for this and made revisions according to suggestions of all members of th e writing committee. The manuscript was reviewed by four independent review ers assigned by the NASPE Committee for the Development of Position Stateme nts and NASPE Board of Trustees. Conclusion: Despite considerable advances in knowledge regarding the diagno sis, therapy, and mechanisms of arrhythmias in the athlete, much remains un known. Continued basic, clinical, and epidemiologic research is needed. Cur rent screening techniques to detect athletes lack sensitivity and specifici ty. Evaluation of standardized screening programs with tracking of long-ter m outcomes is needed. Officials from athletic, academic, medical, and legal institutions need to form strategic partnerships to develop policy related to assessment of risk and assumption of responsibility for athletic activi ties.