Free ECG Training Modules

The Center for Sports Cardiology at the University of Washington in collaboration with the Australasian College of Sport and Exercise Physicians (ACSEP) is excited to offer open access worldwide to a new collection of six online electrocardiogram (ECG) training modules. These are based on the 'International criteria' and the latest consensus recommendations for ECG interpretation in athletes. The development of the modules that were launched in 2019 was supported in part from educational grants provided by AMSSM and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. 

AMSSM members and other physicians from around the world can access the modules at: https://uwsportscardiology.org/e-academy 

These updated training modules that were developed by past AMSSM President Jonathan Drezner, MD and colleagues from ACSEP build upon the original ECG interpretation training modules that launched in 2013. More than 60,000 of those modules were completed by physicians from 138 countries. Like the 2013 modules, these new training modules are freely available to any clinician around the globe. ECG increases the detection of cardiac disorders predisposing to sudden cardiac death, the leading cause of athlete fatalities during sports participation. 

The ECG modules are based on the 2017 'International criteria' and the latest consensus standards for interpretation of an athlete’s ECG. The training course includes 6 modules aimed to help the clinician distinguish normal physiologic ECG findings from ECG abnormalities requiring more investigation. Importantly, the modules provide recommendations for the secondary testing of each specific ECG abnormality to evaluate for the presence of underlying cardiac pathology. The complete training course includes:

1. Basic ECG interpretation in athletes (post-test 1)
2. Normal ECG findings in athletes
3. ECG abnormalities in cardiomyopathy
4. ECG abnormalities in primary electrical disease
5. ECG interpretation challenges and common pitfalls
6. Advanced ECG interpretation in athletes (post-test)

In 2013, AMSSM led an effort to train physicians around the world in ECG interpretation in athletes. In partnership with the FIFA Medical Assessment and Research Center (F-MARC), the British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM), the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Sports Cardiology Subsection, the Pediatric & Congenital Electrophysiology Society (PACES) and other leading U.S. cardiologists, we have developed an online resource and comprehensive training module targeted for physicians around the world to gain expertise and competence in ECG interpretation.

The effort to develop the criteria began with an ECG Summit in Seattle on Feb. 13-14, 2012, bringing together many of the world’s premier sports cardiologists and sports medicine physicians, including participants from the U.S., Italy, Sweden, U.K., Belgium, Switzerland, Brazil and Qatar.

Then a year later, the February 2013 issue of BJSM featured four key papers on ECG interpretation in athletes developed by a team of international leaders in sports cardiology and sports medicine with the intent of better identifying athletes at risk of sudden cardiac death. AMSSM President Jonathan Drezner, MD, served as Guest Editor for this BJSM issue. Click Here to read the four key papers.

Each of the papers ties to an online training module that is hosted by BMJ E-learning (and linked through the AMSSM website). This state-of-the-art E-learning resource is freely accessible to any physician worldwide and will help create a larger physician infrastructure that is skilled and capable of accurate ECG interpretation in athletes. Improved ECG interpretation may identify athletes with at-risk disorders and help prevent sudden death in sport.

Accessing the Module: Click Here to access this 2013 resource on the BMJ E-Learning site. If you are a first-time user, you will need to register on the BMJ site. After you register, you will gain access to the module. The online course includes five tutorials:

• ECG interpretation in athletes: identify your learning needs
• Normal ECG findings: recognizing physiologic adaptations in athletes
• Abnormal ECG findings in athletes: recognizing changes suggestive of cardiomyopathy
• Abnormal ECG findings in athletes: recognizing changes suggestive of primary electrical disease ECG interpretation in athletes: test your knowledge