Sports Anaemia in Endurance Athletes: A Physiological Phenomenon.

ABSTRACT

Endurance athletes require a very efficient oxygen transport system for maximal aerobic power during physical work performance. Many studies carried on endurance athletes suggested low levels of red blood cell markers leading to misconception of existence of so called sports anaemia in athletes. Sometimes athletes are on needless iron supplementation and are concern about anaemia. The main objectives of the study were to investigate the red cell population markers and to study the sports anaemia phenomenon in endurance athletes and the underlying responses responsible for ot. 60 male endurance track and field runners age group 18-21 were selected from the local city based club named Vasant Desai Krida Sangh Akola and were compared with the age, height sex matched non athletes students of Govt. Medical College Akola. The seven red blood cell markers were studied from the blood samples taken from the cubital vein under standard conditions. The blood variables for both the groups were analyzed with an automatic cell counter. The mean values of Hb(12.27 gm% +/- 0.782), RBC count in(3.64millions per cu mm+/-0.52), hematocrit ( 41.58 % +/- 1.32), mean corpuscular Hb conc (MCHC 29.49% +/- 1.198) were all very significantly lower ( p<0.0001) as compare to controls. Whereas the plasma volume (58.412% +/- 1.32), Mean Corpuscular volume (MCV 115.06 cu microns+/- 11.54)), Mean Hb conc (MCH 33.998 picogms+/- 2.608), were significantly increased in endurance athletes. Though decrease in Hb conc, Low RBC count and less hematocrit in endurance athletes indicate presence of anaemia in them but it’s not a true anaemia as it is also confirmed by MCV, MCH, MCHC values between the two groups. The significant differences between the groups are due to the response to endurance training leading to hemo dilutional anaemia caused by plasma volume expansion which increases the blood volume in endurance athletes helping them for better oxygen supply and aerobic power needed during physical work.