Bradycardia in Athletes: Prevalence, Mechanisms, and Risks
Resting bradycardia (HR ≤40 bpm) and pauses of 2 to 3 s are present in a significant proportion of endurance athletes and are well tolerated. Our data suggest that both fitness and genetic variation contribute to sinus node function in endurance athletes. Intriguingly, HR-PRS differed between athletes and nonathletes, raising the possibility that genetics may be a determinant of athleticism.
Authors
- Paul Lacaze (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0902-6798)
- Luke Spencer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4153-9048)
- Hielko Miljoen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6568-451X)
- Eleni Giannoulatou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7084-6736)
- Tim Van Puyvelde (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-3541-0264)
- Peter Hespel
- Jarne De Paepe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1452-6276)
- Renée Johnson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8979-2096)
- Hein Heidbüchel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9301-8127)
- Chenglong Yu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0546-2779)
- Kristof Lefebvre
- Kasper Favere
- André La Gerche (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3906-3784)
- Youri Bekhuis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3903-5051)
- Maria Brosnan
- Isabel Witvrouwen
- Dominique Hansen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3074-2737)
- Elizabeth Davida Paratz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2122-9889)
- Tom Dresselaers (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0884-5142)
- Dorien Vermeulen
- D. Flannery (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4559-7635)
- Bernard P. Paelinck (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3478-6801)
- Boris Delpire (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1887-6919)
- Kristel Janssens (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-3176-6751)
- Daisy Thijs
- Lieven Herbots (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7784-3610)
- Paolo D’Ambrosio (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8459-2140)
- Sofie Van Soest
- Jonathan M. Kalman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6618-7184)
- Peter Vanvoorden
- Thomas Rosseel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9688-3033)
- Paul Young (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5789-563X)
- Diane Fatkin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9010-9856)
- Jan Bogaert (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7495-9183)
- Guido Claessen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8261-6666)
- Gwilym M. Morris (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9893-6648)
- S. Rowe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7618-3040)
- Rik Willems (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5469-9609)
- David L. Prior (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3243-7026)
- Magdalena Soka (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7516-8751)
- Bert O. Eijnde (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2262-4661)
- Tomas Robyns (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8676-4874)
- Peter M. Kistler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5369-5844)
- Christophe Dausin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7864-2968)
- Monique Ohanian (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6651-0770)
- Amy M Mitchell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1475-2222)
- Steven Dymarkowski
- Rik Pauwels (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-6287-5085)
Institutions
- The Royal Melbourne Hospital (AU)
- Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute (AU)
- University of Antwerp (BE)
- The University of Melbourne (AU)
- Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute (AU)
- National Heart Foundation of Australia (AU)
- John Hunter Hospital (AU)
- The Alfred Hospital (AU)
- UNSW Sydney (AU)
- St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne (AU)
- St Vincent's Hospital Sydney (AU)
- Antwerp University Hospital (BE)
- VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology (BE)
- Hartcentrum Hasselt (BE)
- Imelda Hospital (BE)
- Monash University (AU)
- St Vincents Institute of Medical Research (AU)
- University of Newcastle Australia (AU)
- Australian Catholic University (AU)
- Hasselt University (BE)
- KU Leuven (BE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Circulation
- Published
- 2025-12-18
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1161/circulationaha.125.076170
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Cardiovascular Effects of Exercise
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.39
Funders
- Australian Government
- National Heart Foundation of Australia
- NSW Ministry of Health
- Vlaamse regering
- Medical Research Council
- National Health and Medical Research Council