Hi All -
I’m writing this from a hospital bed (more on that below) and am wondering:
Are there any studies in the scientific literature regarding 'well trained athletes" (or maybe more broadly, people with a naturally ‘low resting HR’) having a higher risk or prevalence of DVT (i.e. perhaps from flying, etc.) than “non-athletes”?
For ‘well trained athletes’ let’s broadly call it a Cat 1/2 and above type road cyclists & MTB’ers. (for ‘low resting HR’…well, I’m not sure where to put the cutoff value for that).
Reason I ask – I’ve been living in Denmark as an American expat for past 2.5 years. This was a company sponsored ‘business trip’ where I was sent here for a project and they are now moving me back home to California. My project in Denmark has concluded, and I’ve made plans to return to the US (i.e. San Francisco…10 hour direct flight from Copenhagen) and have spent the past months readying for the trip…i.e. shipping bikes back home!, closing out housing arrangements, booking flights blah blah, etc.
Part of my preparation for back home was signing up for Moab Rocks Stage Race in the Spring, and starting Sweet Spot Base High Volume I back at beginning of September, and just finishing up SSBHVII and starting up a short Build period to work on my ceiling a bit, etc.
However, disaster has stricken me – Literally during my planned, let’s- say-good-by -celebratory “last ride in Denmark” ride (road) with some Danish friends here, I slipped on some wet leaves going like 1 mph in a parking lot and slammed onto my hip HARD resulting in a fracture of the neck of my femur.
Yes, I literally broke my leg 5 days before my planned move back to the US (again, a 10 hour, direct, flight).
So here I am writing this question from my Danish hospital room, recovering from a successful surgery where 3 screws were inserted into my femur…and wondering how / when I am going to fly back home!! Obviously, my planned flight home 5 days from now is completely out of the question…and am wondering if returning before the end of the year (i.e. 3 - 4 weeks from now) is realistic.
I’m thinking 4 - 6 weeks out from flying is more realistic, but due to a range of factors, I really do need to get home as soon as possible, so am hoping for sooner.
I know with my recent surgery , I have a high (super high? lol) risk of DVT on such a long haul direct flight…but I am wondering if also as a life-long athlete, now Masters (age 45) if I am at higher risk? My resting HR is generally in the low-40’s, and I have a history of low blood pressure as well (enough to nearly always cause gasps here at the hospital when they check it…i.e. like 96/59 when they first admitted here, to 118/60 this morning (i think that’s what it was anyway).
Does the combination of being a life long endurance athlete, my age (45), my recent completion of a dedicated training program (i.e. SSBHV1 and 2) and nearly 9,000 miles of pavement and dirt cycling just this year (which is a typical year for me), low blood pressure, low resting HR PLUS the surgery…put me at greater risk than someone who has NONE of those athletic attributes, but had also had the surgery
Is there anything in the literature that can provide insight?
Thanks,
Ron Shevock