Dataset Information

Electrocardiographic characteristics of trained and untrained standardbred racehorses.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Long-term exercise induces cardiac remodeling that potentially influences the electrical properties of the heart.

Hypothesis/objectives

We assessed whether training alters cardiac conduction in Standardbred racehorses.

Animals

Two hundred one trained and 52 untrained Standardbred horses.

Methods

Cross-sectional study. Resting ECG recordings were analyzed to assess heart rate (HR) along with standard ECG parameters and for identification of atrial and ventricular arrhythmias. An electrophysiological study was performed in 13 horses assessing the effect of training on sinoatrial (SA) and atrioventricular (AV) nodal function by sinus node recovery time (SNRT) and His signal recordings. Age and sex adjustments were implemented in multiple and logistic regression models for comparison.

Results

Resting HR in beats per minute (bpm) was lower in trained vs untrained horses (mean, 30.8 ± 2.6 bpm vs 32.9 ± 4.2 bpm; P = .001). Trained horses more often displayed second-degree atrioventricular block (2AVB; odds ratio, 2.59; P = .04). No difference in SNRT was found between groups (n = 13). Mean P-A, A-H, and H-V intervals were 71 ± 20, 209 ± 41, and 134 ± 41 ms, respectively (n = 7). We did not detect a training effect on AV-nodal conduction intervals. His signals were present in 1 horse during 2AVB with varying H-V interval preceding a blocked beat.

Conclusions and clinical importance

We identified decreased HR and increased frequency of 2AVB in trained horses. In 5 of 7 horses, His signal recordings had variable H-V intervals within each individual horse, providing novel insight into AV conduction in horses.

SUBMITTER: Nissen SD

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9151491 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Electrocardiographic characteristics of trained and untrained standardbred racehorses.

Nissen Sarah D SD Weis Rikke R Krag-Andersen Elisabeth K EK Hesselkilde Eva M EM Isaksen Jonas L JL Carstensen Helena H Kanters Jørgen K JK Linz Dominik D Sanders Prashanthan P Hopster-Iversen Charlotte C Jespersen Thomas T Pehrson Steen S Buhl Rikke R

Journal of veterinary internal medicine 20220430 3

<h4>Background</h4>Long-term exercise induces cardiac remodeling that potentially influences the electrical properties of the heart.<h4>Hypothesis/objectives</h4>We assessed whether training alters cardiac conduction in Standardbred racehorses.<h4>Animals</h4>Two hundred one trained and 52 untrained Standardbred horses.<h4>Methods</h4>Cross-sectional study. Resting ECG recordings were analyzed to assess heart rate (HR) along with standard ECG parameters and for identification of atrial and ventr ...[more]

PMID: 35488721

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Dataset Information

Electrocardiographic characteristics of trained and untrained standardbred racehorses.

Background

Hypothesis/objectives

Animals

Methods

Results

Conclusions and clinical importance

Publications

Electrocardiographic characteristics of trained and untrained standardbred racehorses.

Similar Datasets

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