Key result
Male gender and African-American race are the only demographics associated with sudden cardiac death in young athletes, while prospective data on resting vital signs and age are lacking.
Why the study?
Are vital signs and basic demographics associated with the risk of sudden cardiac death in young athletes?
Are vital signs and basic demographics associated with the risk of sudden cardiac death in young athletes?
There is a significant lack of prospective data evaluating whether routine vital signs and demographics (other than male gender and African-American race) predict sudden cardiac death in young athletes.
Only male gender and African-American race should inform SCD risk assessment in young athletes; leaves open prospective validation of vital signs and age.
Much attention recently has been paid to the detection of those young athletes who may be at risk for sudden cardiac death (SCD) in sports participation. In this article, we attempt to summarize the remarkably few studies that examine the question of whether vital signs and basic demographics are associated with athletes at risk for SCD. Historical items such as chest pain, dyspnea, and palpitations are not reviewed. The only demographics mentioned in the literature as associated with SCD are being of the male gender, which is associated highly with SCD, and being African-American. Most notably, we were unable to find even prospective data asking the question of whether resting pulse, blood pressure, height, weight, and age are potential risk factors. Therefore, we also have included recent data from our own research to make this summary more complete.
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Sealy et al. (2010) conducted a review in Sudden cardiac death risk in young athletes. Vital signs and basic demographics was evaluated on Association with sudden cardiac death. Male gender and African-American race are the only demographics associated with sudden cardiac death in young athletes, while prospective data on resting vital signs and age are lacking.
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