Shedding Light On The Hearts Of Pro Basketball Players

Every time an athlete dies on the field there is renewed interest in the controversial topic of preparticipation screening. One key limitation in the field is that there is little or no good data about what constitutes a healthy heart in athletes. Now a new study published in JAMA Cardiology provides an extraordinarily detailed look…

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Athletes With Defibrillators Don’t Need To Quit Sports

Although the American College of Cardiology and the European Society of Cardiology now advise people with ICDs not to participate in vigorous sports, a new study offers strong support for people with ICDs who want to take part in sports. Although a large number of people with ICDs are elderly heart failure patients who are unlikely…

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Model Finds High Cost For ECG Screening Of Athletes

A national program of ECG screening for U.S. athletes would save almost 5,000 lives over 20 years but would cost more than $50 billion dollars, according to a paper published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The advisability of routine ECG screening for athletes has divided the experts: currently the ESC recommends ECG screening…

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Guest Post: The Dark Side of EKG Screening in Athletes

The following guest post is reprinted with permission from DrWes, the blog written by Westby G. Fisher, a board certified internist, cardiologist, and cardiac electrophysiologist practicing at NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, IL. The Dark Side of EKG Screening in Athletes by Westby Fisher They sat nervously with their son in the doctor’s office, wondering why they…

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Half the News That’s Fit To Print: NY Times On ECG Screening For Student Athletes

There may be no more horrifying medical catastrophe than the sudden death of a young athlete on the playing field in front of a large crowd of friends, family, and community. But it’s also a dizzyingly complex subject with no easy solutions. Experts are divided. The American Heart Association recently reaffirmed that it does not recommend…

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