Saving the Lives of College Athletes Today!

You are living your dream, feeling and looking great as you compete with some of the best athletes in the world, yet there is something important you should know.  College athletes are considered two to three times more likely to suffer Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) than their less-active peers. Exercise can push an already compromised heart over the edge.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) supports ECG screenings in the Lausanne Recommendations, and heart screenings are now required for all players in the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Football League (NFL), the National Hockey League (NHL), and the World Cup™ Soccer organization FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association).

Some colleges are now requiring that their athletes undergo heart screenings as part of their preparticipation requirements.

“While only about 1 in 500 people have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the leading cause of sudden death in young athletes, most have no idea they are afflicted. A screening electrocardiogram can often identify this as well as other life threatening conditions. Thus the ECG has the potential to save not only the life of the athlete, but also to alert family members who may be in danger.”

- Sylvan L. Weinberg, MD, MACC
Clinical Professor of Medicine, Wright State University School of Medicine,
and Past President of the American College of Cardiology

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