Division of Sports Medicine & Shoulder Surgery
The Division of Sports Medicine & Shoulder Surgery, part of the Department of Orthopedics, offers expert patient care, research programs, and education and training programs.
Sports Cardiology & Performance Program
Specialized care boosts performance, ensures heart health
Athletic Heart Health
The Sports Cardiology and Performance Program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) works with athletes of all levels. Our team of cardiovascular experts partner with you to provide a specialized heart and vascular assessment. Together, we create a comprehensive care plan designed to safely optimize your performance and help you achieve your goals.
Specialized Heart Care for Athletes
The sports cardiology program offers care for every athlete, including the following:
- Athletes who develop cardiac symptoms during sports participation
- College athletes
- High School athletes
- Professional athletes
- Weekend warriors
We combine advanced cardiopulmonary and physiologic testing to take care of your cardiovascular health and give you the support you need. Your care team includes specialists in cardiac imaging, genetic heart disease, electrophysiology, nutrition and sports cardiology.
Our Program Focus
Your sports cardiology care team evaluates your heart health and overall physical health. If you have a suspected cardiovascular condition, we can make a diagnosis. Together, we create a care plan that improves your health and enables you to safely continue your sport.
If you experience performance-related issues, we can pinpoint the underlying cause. Your care team works with you to design a training routine to reach your goals. Our sports cardiology team creates the right program for you. Our work together may include the following elements:
- Optimization of cardiovascular performance
- Performance-enhancing drugs and supplement counseling
- Personalized exercise counseling if you have cardiovascular disease
- Return to athletics rehabilitation and sports eligibility programs
More About Sports Cardiology
Cardiovascular Evaluation & Testing
When you see a sports cardiology specialist, you receive a comprehensive evaluation and complete cardiovascular testing. We use a patient centered approach to understand your needs and create the right care plan for you.
During your appointment, we complete the following:
- Advanced cardiovascular imaging as needed, including:
- Cardiac computerized tomography (CT) scans
- Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and exercise cardiac MRI studies
- Coronary angiography
- Assessment of your symptoms
- Athletic, drug, family and medical histories
- Blood tests and other laboratory testing
- Cardiopulmonary exercise testing
- Echocardiogram and/or exercise echocardiogram
- Electrocardiogram
- Genetic counseling and screening
- Physical examination
- Stress tests
- Testosterone level measurements
Depending on your condition and goals, your care team may recommend additional evaluations and tests. These may include the following:
- Autonomic testing
- Endocrine evaluation if you take performance-enhancing drugs (anabolic steroids) or if you are considering testosterone replacement therapy
- Pulmonary and sleep medicine evaluation for breathing training, sleep optimization and/or breathing-related issues
- Referrals to other specialists as needed
- Sports medicine and/or sports medicine orthopedic evaluation and consultation
- Sports nutrition consultation focusing on fuel utilization, diet and hydration during exercise
Clinical Trials & Research
As a BIDMC sports cardiology patient, you can take part in clinical trials and research. We have two main areas of focus:
- Genetic and biochemical profiling to understand the molecular basis of human performance, human fitness, and training response variability
- Wearable devices to personalize exercise recommendations and training plans
Members of our sports cardiology team are national research leaders. They are supported by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the American Heart Association.
BIDMC is a core site for the largest study of precision exercise medicine – the NIH’s Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Consortium. This study aims to identify key determinants of fitness, muscle strength and optimal cardiovascular and metabolic health.
Meet the Team
Our team of providers consists of leading specialists in sports cardiology, genetic heart disease, cardiac imaging, electrophysiology and nutrition.
