Incidence of Sudden Cardiac Arrest
in High School Student Athletes on School Campus
in High School Student Athletes on School Campus
Toresdahl
BG, Rao AL, Harmon KG, & Drezner JA.
Heart Rhythm. 2014 Published Online First April 11,
2014: doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016.j.hrthm.2014.04.017
BG, Rao AL, Harmon KG, & Drezner JA.
Heart Rhythm. 2014 Published Online First April 11,
2014: doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016.j.hrthm.2014.04.017
Take Home Message: Male athletes have the highest risk for sudden
cardiac arrest compared with non-athletes.
Preventative measures should be targeted to this at-risk population,
specifically in higher risk sports such as football and basketball.
cardiac arrest compared with non-athletes.
Preventative measures should be targeted to this at-risk population,
specifically in higher risk sports such as football and basketball.
Sudden
cardiac arrest (SCA) events are catastrophic but yet a debate continues about
how we should screen athletes to identify individuals at high risk. Part of the
challenge is that we don’t have a good understanding of how often SCA occurs in
the athletic population. Therefore,
Toresdahl and colleagues investigated the occurrence of on-campus SCA events in
a large United States high school student population, both athletic and
non-athletic. On-campus SCA events were
monitored at 2,149 high schools for approximately 2 academic years. Throughout this time, 26 SCA events were
reported in students with 18 SCA cases occurring in student athletes. The overall SCA incidence in high school
students on campus was 0.63 per 100,000 students. Among student-nonathletes the
incidence was 0.31 per 100,000 students while the incidence rate in
student-athletes was 1.14 per 100,000, which illustrated a relative risk that
was more than 3 times greater within the student athlete population. Among student-athletes, the risk was 5.65
times higher in males compared with females.
Males specifically had a higher incidence of SCA events, with the
relative risk drastically greater (almost 5 times greater) among male student
athletes compared with male non-athletes.
There were 4 total deaths post SCA event, 2 in athletes (male) and 2 in
non-athletes (female).
cardiac arrest (SCA) events are catastrophic but yet a debate continues about
how we should screen athletes to identify individuals at high risk. Part of the
challenge is that we don’t have a good understanding of how often SCA occurs in
the athletic population. Therefore,
Toresdahl and colleagues investigated the occurrence of on-campus SCA events in
a large United States high school student population, both athletic and
non-athletic. On-campus SCA events were
monitored at 2,149 high schools for approximately 2 academic years. Throughout this time, 26 SCA events were
reported in students with 18 SCA cases occurring in student athletes. The overall SCA incidence in high school
students on campus was 0.63 per 100,000 students. Among student-nonathletes the
incidence was 0.31 per 100,000 students while the incidence rate in
student-athletes was 1.14 per 100,000, which illustrated a relative risk that
was more than 3 times greater within the student athlete population. Among student-athletes, the risk was 5.65
times higher in males compared with females.
Males specifically had a higher incidence of SCA events, with the
relative risk drastically greater (almost 5 times greater) among male student
athletes compared with male non-athletes.
There were 4 total deaths post SCA event, 2 in athletes (male) and 2 in
non-athletes (female).
This
study illustrates that the incidence of on campus SCA events is higher than
originally thought. While most of the
included schools required a pre-participation exam prior to athletics, this
still is not reducing the risk for SCA events and a more sensitive screening
measure may be warranted. Male student
athletes appear to be the most at-risk population. Preventative screening measures may need to
be emphasized and targeted on male student athletes based on the findings of
this study, specifically in higher risk sports such as football and basketball. A vast majority of the schools that were
included within this study (87%) had automated external defibrillators (AED),
and only 1 of the SCA reporting schools did not have this program. The authors of this study highlight that high
AED access may be why there is such a high survival rate post SCA event, and
recognize that this may not accurately reflect all high schools across the
United States. It would be interesting
to see what percentage of high schools nationwide have AED programs as well as
look at their response times of AED’s to these SCA events. It may be that the AED access saved many of
the lives during the SCA events. It is important to note that this study
focused on on-campus event; hence it is probable that the rate of SCA events is
higher than reported in this study. It would have been interesting if the
authors assessed the occurrence of SCA events among race/ethnicity. Sports Med
Res previously reported a study where the authors found that African-American athletes had
more sudden cardiac death than white athletes, but their rate of sudden cardiac
death was comparable to the general student body of African Americans. Overall,
we can use these new findings to further raise awareness about sudden cardiac
arrest among high school athletes and the need to have AEDs and to further
improve our screening protocols.
study illustrates that the incidence of on campus SCA events is higher than
originally thought. While most of the
included schools required a pre-participation exam prior to athletics, this
still is not reducing the risk for SCA events and a more sensitive screening
measure may be warranted. Male student
athletes appear to be the most at-risk population. Preventative screening measures may need to
be emphasized and targeted on male student athletes based on the findings of
this study, specifically in higher risk sports such as football and basketball. A vast majority of the schools that were
included within this study (87%) had automated external defibrillators (AED),
and only 1 of the SCA reporting schools did not have this program. The authors of this study highlight that high
AED access may be why there is such a high survival rate post SCA event, and
recognize that this may not accurately reflect all high schools across the
United States. It would be interesting
to see what percentage of high schools nationwide have AED programs as well as
look at their response times of AED’s to these SCA events. It may be that the AED access saved many of
the lives during the SCA events. It is important to note that this study
focused on on-campus event; hence it is probable that the rate of SCA events is
higher than reported in this study. It would have been interesting if the
authors assessed the occurrence of SCA events among race/ethnicity. Sports Med
Res previously reported a study where the authors found that African-American athletes had
more sudden cardiac death than white athletes, but their rate of sudden cardiac
death was comparable to the general student body of African Americans. Overall,
we can use these new findings to further raise awareness about sudden cardiac
arrest among high school athletes and the need to have AEDs and to further
improve our screening protocols.
Questions for Discussion: Do
all of the high schools in your area have access to an AED? Do you think that preventative EKG screenings
should be used in high school male athletes since they are at a higher
risk?
all of the high schools in your area have access to an AED? Do you think that preventative EKG screenings
should be used in high school male athletes since they are at a higher
risk?
Written
by: Nicole Cattano
by: Nicole Cattano
Reviewed
by: Jeffrey Driban
by: Jeffrey Driban
Related Posts:
Causes and Incidence of Sudden Death Among College Athletes
What is the Cost of Electrocardiographic Screening in Athletes?
Are Interpretations of Preparticipation Screening Electrocardiograms Accurate?
Incidence of Sudden Cardiac Death among NCAA Athletes
Toresdahl, B., Rao, A., Harmon, K., & Drezner, J. (2014). Incidence of sudden cardiac arrest in high school student athletes on school campus Heart Rhythm DOI: 10.1016/j.hrthm.2014.04.017