Vecchiato Marco, Ermolao Andrea, Da Col Marco, Aghi Andrea, Berton Giampaolo, Palermi Stefano, Battista Francesca, Savino Sandro, Drezner Jonathan, Zorzi Alessandro, Niebauer Josef, Neunhaeuserer Daniel
Sports and Exercise Medicine Division, Department of Medicine, University of Padova, Via Giustiniani 2, Padova 35128, Italy.
Fisioterapia Osteopatia Raimondi di Giovanni e Daniele, Selvazzano Dentro, Padova, Italy.
Eur Heart J. 2025 Aug 8;46(30):3006-3016. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf285.
Premature deaths of bodybuilders have raised questions about the safety and associated risks of this discipline. The main objective of this study was to analyse mortality risk in a large international population of bodybuilders.
Male athletes who performed International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) competitions between 2005 and 2020 were identified and classified according to age, division and level. A standardized web-search, tailored to detect deaths, was performed for each athlete using specific keywords, with follow-up through July 2023. Mortality rates have been calculated both as the overall incidence rate during the monitored period as well as the annual incidence rate of those who participated in at least one competition within the previous year, i.e. currently competing athletes.
A total of 20 286 athletes competing in 730 IFBB events were identified with an average follow-up of 8.1 ± 3.8 years (i.e. 190 211 athlete-years of surveillance). During the study period, 121 deaths were identified: 73 were considered sudden deaths, of which 46 were classified as sudden cardiac deaths (SCD), including 11 currently competing athletes (mean age 34.7 ± 6.1 years). The incidence of SCD in currently competing athletes was 32.83 cases per 100 000 athlete-years. Available autopsies of SCD cases consistently showed cardiomegaly and ventricular hypertrophy. Professional bodybuilders had a higher risk of SCD than amateurs (HR 5.23 [3.58-7.64]).
The results of this study should alert the bodybuilding and medical communities to the need for improved preventive measures to promote safer sports participation.
健美运动员过早死亡引发了对这项运动安全性及相关风险的质疑。本研究的主要目的是分析一大群国际健美运动员的死亡风险。
确定了2005年至2020年间参加国际健美健身联合会（IFBB）比赛的男性运动员，并根据年龄、组别和水平进行分类。使用特定关键词对每位运动员进行标准化网络搜索以检测死亡情况，并持续追踪至2023年7月。计算了监测期内的总发病率以及前一年至少参加过一场比赛的运动员（即目前仍在参赛的运动员）的年发病率。
共识别出20286名参加730场IFBB赛事的运动员，平均随访时间为8.1±3.8年（即190211运动员人年的监测）。在研究期间，共确定了121例死亡：73例被认为是猝死，其中46例被归类为心源性猝死（SCD），包括11名目前仍在参赛的运动员（平均年龄34.7±6.1岁）。目前仍在参赛的运动员中心源性猝死的发病率为每100000运动员人年32.83例。心源性猝死病例的现有尸检结果一致显示心脏肥大和心室肥厚。职业健美运动员的心源性猝死风险高于业余运动员（风险比5.23[3.58 - 7.64]）。
本研究结果应提醒健美界和医学界需要改进预防措施，以促进更安全的运动参与。
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