SE Academic Review 2023

27 ACADEMIC REVIEW 2023

CVD preventative methods and plans within sport The ECB provides widespread cardiac screening along with a vast amount of other medical examinations (Lubas Medical, 2018). They state the reason for this is to prevent sudden cardiac deaths and problems occurring within players. The screening process consists of blood pressure readings, echocardiogram (ECG), and a family history interview. As I have previously discussed, family history can have a big impact on the chances of developing a range of CVD. The article explains why they feel the need to operate cardiac scanning sessions as part of their medical review to highlight general risk factors. These are very important, but they are not increased due to the players being professional cricketers. One point mentions that ‘putting the heart under physical exertion’ can increase the chances of developing a CVD but it is not something that was included on the NHS plan. Furthermore, it does not mention the frequency nor intensity the exercise needs to be, to increase the chances of a person developing a CVD. From this information, I do not see any clear evidence that professional sportsmen are more likely to have or develop a CVD and therefore why they should have access to cardiac screening. As professional sportsmen they will have good health due to their lifestyle choices and can have regular, detailed medical scans. They are likely to have stable blood pressure, low cholesterol levels, a healthy diet and of course a very active lifestyle. From this information, the most likely CVD condition the sportsmen will have will be unknown and perhaps congenital. As I now understand CHD cannot be influenced by any factors the athlete can control as it occurs in the womb. This highlights the importance of genetic testing and family history interviews.

A study produced by the Football Association (FA) investigates the issues of sudden cardiac deaths among young athletes. During the investigation they found 42 athletes with cardiac deaths were associated with cardiac disorders (0.38 %). A further 225 athletes were found to have congenital abnormalities (2%). After the screening process eight deaths were found to be caused by cardiac disease. Through the FA, incidents of cardiac deaths were 1 per 14,794 or 6.8 per 100,000 (Malhotra, 2018). Another study by the Journal of Atrial Fibrillation produced a document investigating cardiac deaths in athletes across different sports in different countries. It states that most of the athletes in professional sport have adequate protection from undiscovered underlying cardiac conditions, but sudden cardiac deaths are not unheard of. There is a list of athletes that have had scans and had their conditions discovered, highlighting the importance of the process. Unfortunately, we learn about numerous incidents where athletes did not have a cardiac scan and suffered a fatal cardiac arrest during a match (Bickel, et al., 2019). The study by the FA gives supporting evidence to show that screening people who have no known conditions can directly save lives and prevent deaths, evidence that this type of programme is successful and should be used through all professional sport. Due to the mandatory cardiac screening programme, cricket has the safest and most developed medical programme in the UK, and this model should be followed by all other sports, including a variety of cardiac scans as well as a cardiac history review with a cardiologist. The FA do have a mandatory cardiac programme, but it only consists of a minimum of one ECG, which is not as thorough. A rather blunt summary of this article would be to say that cardiac screening processes save lives. However, the question remains whether athletes should be prioritised over the public, who are more likely to have or develop a CVD due to other factors. This perhaps shows that what is currently being done in the UK is not enough, as simple scanning processes will prevent deaths.