(L – R) Dr. Andrei Krassioukov, researcher with ICORD spinal cord research program at VGH and staff physician with GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre, with SCI patient working on cardiovascular health on arm ergometer
Submitted by VCH Research Institute
Dr. Andrei Krassioukov, researcher with ICORD spinal cord research program at VGH and staff physician with GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre, is taking a team of five investigators to this year’s Paralympic Games in London. Of particular concern for the research team is “boosting,” known by the medical community as autonomic dysreflexia. Boosting is brought on when athletes with spinal cord injury (SCI) induce injuries to themselves that increase blood pressure and can enhance performance by up to 15 per cent.
Many athletes who participate in the Paralympics have spinal cord injuries that limit their ability to regulate their heart rate and blood pressure. For top-level athletes, this can be a huge competitive disadvantage. An increased heart rate and elevated blood pressure provides the energy and stamina to compete in strenuous sports. Athletes have been taking advantage of this by boosting.
While boosting is banned by the International Paralympic committee, it is still known to be frequently practiced, with athletes blocking their catheters or even going so far as to break a toe to bring upon a blood pressure increase. While this may lead to performance results, autonomic dysreflexia or boosting can be extremely dangerous, leading to heart damage, stroke, and even death.
Dr. Krassioukov’s team will operate through a clinic in London’s Olympic Village from August 29th to September 9th. There, they will provide evidence-based clinical knowledge on autonomic dysreflexia and other cardiovascular conditions to Paralympians with SCI and their coaches, and continue their research from the 2010 Winter Games on its prevalence and severity. They will also be developing a process for assessing and classifying athletes based on their cardiovascular function, similar to how weight class system works for boxers – ensuring that they compete on a level playing field, making the need to boost their blood pressure irrelevant.
Working with the support of the International Paralympic Committee, the end goal is to establish fair competition by ensuring that athletes are competing against people who have the same ability and level of function.
For more information on Dr. Krassioukov’s team, click here. To learn more about boosting, click here.