Reference intervals for blood parameters in young athletes

Abstract

Comprehensive medical examination (CMO) of athletes allows timely detection of different diseases and formation of risk groups. To increase the accuracy of CMO in young athletes, it is necessary to calculate reference intervals (RIs) for blood parameters considering sex, age, and sports specialization. Objective. To calculate RIs for blood parameters of young athletes under 18 years of age using the results of CMO collected for many years. Materials and methods. We analyzed 4,568 results of blood tests of athletes aged 14 to 18 years (2,385 boys and 2,183 girls) obtained within CMO of members of Russian national sports teams in 2015–2019. This study was conducted in the Federal Research and Clinical Center for Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation. Twenty-two blood parameters were evaluated. Athletes not admitted to training, with an unsatisfactory state of health, or with a history of diseases affecting the metabolic profile of the body were excluded from the analysis. At the first stage, we calculated RIs for blood parameters in athletes with the consideration of sex and age (age groups: 14–15 years and 16–17 years). At the second stage, we compared calculated RIs for blood parameters with RIs used in CMO of athletes in healthcare institutions of Federal Biomedical Agency of Russia. Conclusion. The analysis of calculated RIs for blood parameters in athletes demonstrated their significant and multidirectional differences from the reference ranges used in the practice of sports medicine. Key words: biochemical markers, metabolism, reference intervals, professional sport, comprehensive medical examination, juniors