Our weekly update on news in the world of heart safety and noninvasive cardiology

Should athletic programs screen players for heart problems?
In Phoenix, the TOPS program offers free physicals and electrocardiograms (EKGs) for high school athletes. Student athletes at the University of Kansas get EKGs paid for by the mother of a player who died of sudden cardiac arrest after a workout in 2000.

The University of Georgia gives its athletes full echocardiogram ultrasound tests, which costs more than $1,000 each. “It’s certainly worth whatever the price is,” Steve Bryant, on of the university’s trainers, told the Associated Press.

Many organizations feel a screening program is too expensive since the number of young athletes whose undiagnosed heart conditions will lead to sudden cardiac arrest is low (125 a year, according to those quoted in the article).

Others use an American Heart Association screening that relies on a questionnaire about family medical and and a physicial; whether an athlete gets in EKG exam is at the discretion of the doctor.

Read more about arguments on both sides of the debate in the Associated Press article.

New significance to electrocardiogram results

Research reported in the June 24 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association found new significance in a slight abnormality in electrocardiogram results.

Lengthening of a period of heart activity known as the PR interval was previously thought to be benign. However, the study found it to be an indicator of increased risk of atrial fibrillation and early death.

Dr. Thomas Wang, associate director of heart failure and heart transplantation at Massachusetts General Hospital. “The main message of this paper is that there is an association between this EKG finding and future risk of heart rhythm abnormalities and death.”

Billy Mays cause of death: sudden cardiac arrest; heart disease
From Fox News: Initial autopsy results suggest the cause of death for famous television pitchman Billy Mays was likely heart disease.

Live on Fox News the County Coroner specifically stated Billy Mays suffered “an electrical disorder that leads to sudden death,” otherwise known as sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).

Hillsborough County Medical Center Dr. Vernard Adams said in a press conference Monday that the autopsy revealed no evidence of any external or internal head trauma, correcting early reports that Mays may have suffered an ultimately fatal wound to the head during a rough plane landing Saturday.

“Unfortunately and tragically, in many cases the first sign of heart disease is sudden cardiac arrest. Billy Mays’ death is a reminder that we should all make every effort to know about, avoid or modify the possible risk factors for heart disease,” said Dr. Vince Mosesso, medical director for the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Association and associate professor of emergency medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Cardiac rehabilitation improves survival rates in older patients
A study of more than 600,000 Medicare patients with coronary artery disease has found that those receiving cardiac rehabilitation reduced 5-year mortality by 21 to 34 prercent.

The study, reported in the June 30 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, was one of the first to look at the effect of cardiac rehabilitation programs on older patients and a more diverse population. Twelve percent of the people in the study participated in cardiac rehabilitation programs, attending an average of 24 sessions involving nutritional counseling, modification of lifestyle risk factors, and monitored and independent exercise. Their survival rates were compared to those of the remainder of the participants, who did not use cardiac rehabilitation programs.

“More coronary patients should use cardiac rehab. Perhaps one way to achieve this would be to require hospitals and physicians to report rates of referrals and use of this service as quality indicators of their performance,” the study concluded.

On Isle of Man, AEDs in businesses protect the whole community
Twenty automated external defibrillators (AEDs) underwritten by the Microgaming Hospital Trust on the Isle of Man are sited in private and public-sector companies, but accessible to the entire community at large. One of the most recent businesses to join the public access defibrillation initiative is Laxey Dental Surgery, where all staff have been trained to use the new AED.

Companies that participate in the Microgaming Hospital Trust AED initiative have a defibrillator on site and have personnel trained it its use. They’re identified by an AED sign displayed prominently in a window or on the exterior of the building.

Related Products

• Powerheart AED G3 Plus
• Powerheart AED G3 Fully Automatic and Semi-automatic
• Burdick Atria 6100 ECG
• Quinton Q-Tel cardiac rehabilitation management system 3.1

Last 5 posts by Joe Hage

• Dave Marver on Cardiac Science Quality - February 8th, 2010
• Arizona defibrillator rescue: City of Yuma recognizes golf pro who used Powerheart AED - February 4th, 2010
• EHR/EMR use on the rise, Federal health IT leader notes - February 3rd, 2010
• Obama's priorities shift away from healthcare: Cardiac Science for the week of Feb. 1 - February 1st, 2010
• New York AED bill would mandate CPR, defibrillator training for teachers - January 26th, 2010