Seeming healthy children can be walking around (or running and playing) with a hidden killer: hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a thickening of the heart that can trigger an irregular heartbeat and sudden death.
Often no one has any idea that a child suffers from HCM—until a school gym class or team sports puts additional stress on the heart. That’s why many parents are insisting that their children undergo cardiac screening, including a electrocardiogram (EKG) and echocardiography (ultrasound)—tests that can reveal the condition.
Play safe: ECG screening can diagnose potentially fatal hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in teens.
Dr. Merle Myerson, a cardiologist at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital in New York City, stated in a Fox News report that while HCM can kill at any time, exercise subjects the heart to additional stress.
Dr. Robert Tozzi, a pediatric cardiologist who directs the Gregory M. Hirsch Center for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, told Fox News that approximately one in 500 people carries the HCM gene, and that the best time for cardiac screening is when child is between 12 and 18.
Jim and Sheila Fisher of Waldwick, N.J., lost their son Sean to undiagnosed HCM. Sean died while playing football on his 13th birthday. They had no idea he suffered from a heart abnormality until he went into sudden cardiac arrest.
Today the Fishers are leaders in advocating for cardiac screening for teens. They started the Sean Fisher Memorial Foundation and, working with the Gregory M. Hirsh Foundation, raised money to fund a heart screening program to offer exams to freshman at Waldwick High School. Fox News reported that of the 62 students who underwent screenings, two were diagnosed with HCM.
For most communities and most parents, the cost of HCM screening is an issue. Dr. Tozzi told Fox News that he believes the cost of screening with electrocardiograms and echocardiograms, now at approximately $1,400 per child, can be reduced.
Dr. Myerson noted that in Italy, cardiac screening using 12-lead ECG is mandatory for young athletes.
“This is where many abnormalities are picked up,” she told Fox News. “Now there’s a big controversy in this country because (this kind of testing) costs more, and you could have a false-positive, but I think the ECG is non-invasive and relatively inexpensive – so it’s worth it in my opinion.”
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Wed, Aug 11, 2010 |
Cardiology, ECG