A Heart for Sports
Prevention is important. But there are some heart conditions you can’t prevent even if you’re eating the perfect diet, doing the perfect amount of exercise, and leading the perfect life. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a hereditary heart disease that leads to thickening of the heart wall. While some people with HCM experience chest pain, light-headedness, dizziness, and other symptoms, many do not. And in young patients, the first sign of HCM is sudden death.
You would think that athletes would exemplify healthy living. But because they routinely push their bodies to perform at extreme levels, it’s especially important that they be screened for HCM. Sudden death can strike athletes of any sport and is most common in basketball and football players in the US and soccer (football) players in Europe. In student athletes, HCM is the leading cause of sudden death. A Heart For Sports aims to prevent sudden cardiac death by providing echocardiogram and electrocardiogram screenings to student athletes for free.
Founder Seaneen Greaves:
These young athletes, who appeared healthy before they died, are often found to have suffered from unsuspected heart disease. Our mission is to raise awareness that the pre-participation sports physical exams are simply not adequate in most cases. Better cardiac evaluation should be provided along with the taking of a detailed medical and family history is necessary.
Prevention goes a long way, but not always all the way. Routine and thorough check-ups are also important for establishing a baseline of heart disease risk.
Learn more about athletes and heart disease at STLtoday.com.
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Tags: football, basketball, soccer, athletes, heart, heart disease, diseases, illness, health, medicine, heart for sports
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POSTED IN: Hearty Healthcare, Hearty Info
7 opinions for A Heart for Sports
Bob Blumm MA, PA-C
Mar 11, 2007 at 10:51 am
Unfortunately, while working in the ED of a 85,000 visit hospital I observed this three times yearly. I remember walking back into the room after a failed code and looking at the 17 year old as my son was the samew age. A CXR revealed an enlarged heart and I wondered how we could best detect these kids as it is always missed on a sports physicial. Echocardiogram and CXR are the best two methods but the schools won’t go for it.
Hsien-Hsien Lei, PhD
Mar 11, 2007 at 6:08 pm
Bob: Wow. Really? Thanks for sharing. This is serious stuff. I’ve got a four-year-old and will keep this in mind when he starts participating in sports.
Kendra James
Mar 12, 2007 at 5:36 pm
Bob, I totally agree. I have seen it 2 times in 8 years, but to see a 18 or 20 year old dead after working on him for 90 minutes or so, it is unforgettable. I think that CXR or echo should be part of a pre sport physical. I bet you some of the schools would change their tune after a law suit or 2!
Hsien-Hsien Lei, PhD
Mar 12, 2007 at 5:52 pm
Kendra: I’m not sure if schools need to be responsible for this but they certainly should raise awareness among parents so they take their children in to see their physician for a thorough physical.
Steve James
Mar 14, 2007 at 5:36 pm
I had a friend and teammate in college that died all of the sudden. It totally came out of no where. He was in season, in good shape, and it came out of no where. But to be honest, I don’t remember the athletic department making us more aware of the conditions and signs that lead to his death. Hopefully there is more education happening at the NCAA and high school levels for student athletes about these heart conditions.
Hsien-Hsien Lei, PhD
Mar 15, 2007 at 1:24 pm
James: Wow. That’s I’m amazed so many of you have personal stories about knowing others who’ve died of sudden cardiac death. There is obviously an unaddressed need.
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