Can Athletes’ Health be protected on a Budget? The Challenge to Small International Federations and/or Small National Olympic Committees.

Abstract

This article on protecting athletes’ health on a budget – the challenge to small International and National Sports Federations (ISFs and NSFs) and/or small National Olympic Committees (NOCs)- is an eminence based medical opinion. We recommend a Pre-Participation Examination (PPE) as the main pillar of protecting athlete health at all levels of performance. A low-budget approach has to consider what is included and what is excluded initially. In our view, it should include a medical history, physical examination and a 12-lead resting ECG. Laboratory tests of a basic degree are at the discretion of the examing physician.
The purpose of this article is to stress the pivotal role of the PPE for identifying diseases, illness or injury before they occur. It may also be used to build a rapport with the athlete. The evidence base is limited on this subject, but some references are provided. Hopefully, informed by some suggestions in this article, more targeted research can be done.