Dissertation Linda Tangen Aaserud
On 21st September, doctor and ProCardio fellow, Linda Soon Ah Tangen Aaserud, will defend her thesis on the topic "The harmful effect of exercise: Disease progression and arrhythmic risk in exercise-induced arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy and arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy" for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at the Institute of Clinical Medicine at the University of Oslo (UiO). Her trial lecture is titled "The athlete’s heart: Sex differences and implications for management."
Photo: Ine Eriksen, UiO
Public defence: Linda Soon Ah Tangen Aaserud - Institute of Clinical Medicine
Trial Lecture
- Title: The athlete’s heart: Sex differences and implications for management
- Time: 10.15
- Location: Auditorium in the Cancer Centre (building 11), Ullevål Hospital, Kirkeveien 166
Dissertation
- Title: The harmful effect of exercise: Disease progression and arrhythmic risk in exercise-induced arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy and arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy
- Time: 13.15
- Location: Auditorium in the Cancer Centre (building 11), Ullevål Hospital, Kirkeveien 166
Summary
This thesis is within the field of cardiology, with a focus on sports cardiology, cardiac imaging, and heart rhythm disorders. It investigates exercise-induced arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (EiAC), a proposed condition in highly exercise-exposed individuals with ventricular arrhythmias (VA), and compares its long-term course with inherited arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC). The thesis also examines how previous exercise exposure is associated with VA, atrial fibrillation (AF), and arrhythmic patterns in inherited ARVC.
The studies were observational and based on clinical follow-up of patients with EiAC and inherited ARVC. Data included self-reported exercise history, repeated echocardiography, and documented arrhythmic events.
During long-term follow-up, myocardial structure and function remained relatively stable in EiAC, while inherited ARVC showed progressive right ventricular deterioration. Despite these different myocardial courses, life-threatening VA were frequent in both populations.
In inherited ARVC, higher previous exercise intensity was associated with earlier and more frequent VA and AF, with the strongest association observed for VA. Higher exercise exposure was also associated with differences in arrhythmic patterns.
Overall, the findings show different patterns of myocardial disease progression in EiAC and inherited ARVC despite a similarly high occurrence of life-threatening VA. They also show that exercise exposure is relevant to arrhythmic disease expression in inherited ARVC.