Student Athletes Tested Show Abnormal Cardiac Results - Preventive Testing Critical to Reducing Sudden Cardiac Death
(PRWEB) August 06, 2015 -- Wimbledon Health Partners (WHP), through its cardiac athletic testing divisions, Wimbledon Athletics and Wimbledon U, tests high school and college athletes in an attempt to detect silent cardiovascular abnormalities that can lead to sudden cardiac death (SCD).
The diagnostic tests performed include a transthoracic echocardiogram (echo) and electrocardiogram (EKG) testing. In addition to diagnosing conditions that are certainly deadly, WHP has also uncovered issues that while not imminently life-threatening, will have serious consequences for student athletes later in life. This early detection allows student athletes and their families to be better prepared to address potential cardiac issues in the future.
WHP performed thousands of these potentially life-saving tests during the month of July. As a result, a number of asymptomatic but clinically significant abnormalities were identified, ranging from heart valve leaks to electrical conduction anomalies, to actual cardiomyopathy, a condition where the heart muscle is abnormal and can lead to heart failure and sudden cardiac death. Other findings included suggestion of Marfan syndrome, a disease which can lead to aortic aneurysm and rupture; aortic valve abnormalities, which can ultimately lead to heart failure and will eventually require valve replacement, often by the patient’s 50s; mitral valve prolapse with significant regurgitation, which can also lead to heart failure if not detected early; and abnormalities of electrical conduction such as Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome and Long QT syndrome, both of which can contribute to sudden cardiac death.
“We are evaluating a group of individuals that have never been under the eye of diagnostic testing before,” said Bradley J. Artel, MD, FACC, Chief Medical Officer of Wimbledon Health Partners. “As such, the prevalence of abnormalities may very well turn out to be greater than that described by the current medical literature. This could have consequences for these individuals, whom ordinarily would not have been diagnosed until much later in life.”
Wimbledon Athletics and Wimbledon U are at the forefront of early detection of silent cardiovascular abnormalities through the use of diagnostic testing. Isaiah Austin, former basketball star at Baylor University, is a great example of early detection. Days before the NBA Draft, Austin was forced to hang up his sneakers after a full examination and echocardiogram showed symptoms of Marfan syndrome. If left undetected Austin could have been faced with a more fatal conclusion to his career.
Wimbledon Athletics and Wimbledon U team up with high schools, colleges, universities, amateur sports associations, and any other clubs nationwide that want to save athlete’s lives. For more information, or to learn how to bring on-site diagnostic testing to your team, please call (855) 200-8262 or visit http://www.dxtesting.com.
About Wimbledon Health Partners:
Wimbledon Health Partners was formed in response to the demand to attain on-site diagnostic testing capabilities for circulatory conditions that can be detected through the use of vascular ultrasound and echocardiography. Furthering our capabilities, nerve conduction velocity testing (NCV) is also utilized to support diagnosis of nerve involvement and manage risk. The company also reinforces its mission of promoting early testing through its athletics testing division, Wimbledon Athletics, specifically focusing on underlying symptoms related to arterial diseases to help minimize death among young athletes. Wimbledon Health Partners provides physicians and athletic programs with the tools necessary to provide quality, state-of-the-art, in-office testing procedures. For more information go to http://www.dxtesting.com or call (855) 200-8262.
Rick Rues, Wimbledon Health Partners, http://www.dxtesting.com, +1 855-200-8262, [email protected]
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