Biochemical changes after strenuous exercise – data from the Kalmar Ironman

Biochemical changes after strenuous exercise - data from the Kalmar Ironman Strenuous and prolonged exercise like marathon, ultra running and triathlon can lead to changes in biomarkers of cardiac, muscle and kidney functional damage. We present the data of 30 (15 men, 15 women) participants of the Kalmar Ironman 2015. Pre-race electrocardiograms and echocardiograms showed a high frequency of abnormalities. Post race elevations of troponin T, creatine kinase, myoglobin, N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide, and creatinine returned to normal in almost all cases within 5-8 days. In all but one participant the troponin T pattern was compatible with the diagnosis of myocardial infarction. It is an up-to-date unanswered question whether the increase of troponin represents myocardial damage or just is a benign consequence of an intermittent change of the permeability of myocardial cell membranes.