BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) is the leading medical cause of death in young athletes during sport. The presence of congenital abnormalities and electrical abnormalities within the heart that cause SCA can be detected by performing a simple, noninvasive 12-lead ‘ECG’ test or electrocardiogram. The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary (USCGAUX) Health Services and USCG Academy has recognized the importance of screening for possible SCA and has supported this initiative by performing their first ECG screenings on their latest group of USCG swabs (first year cadets).
During the week of July 5th, 2021, volunteers from the USCG Auxiliary teamed with cardiologists from the USCG Auxiliary Health Services and USCG Academy Clinic in collaboration with the Cardiology division of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences to perform ECG screenings on 293 of the Coast Guard’s newest cadets. This joint effort was the first venture of its type at the Coast Guard Academy as they took extra strides to ensure the health of their patient population.
Over several days, hundreds of USCG swabs were screened by performing an ECG with the Cardea 20/20 ECG™ System manufactured by Cardiac Insight. The Cardea 20/20 ECG System is equipped with the International Recommendations for ECG Interpretation in Athletes1 which is more accurate at discerning the specifics of a young athlete’s cardiac anatomy and detecting any abnormalities that need further evaluation by a physician.
“ECG screening of these cadet student athletes with the Cardea 20/20 ECG provided immediate and extremely reliable cardiac ECG data to help prevent a future sudden cardiac event,” remarked James McCriskin, DO, FACP, FACC.
To learn more about the rationale and benefits of ECG testing in athletes, including for ‘tactical’ or occupational athletes in the armed services, see the USCG press release: https://www.mycg.uscg.mil/News/Article/2708271/perfect-cadence-the-us-coast-guard-academys-new-electrocardiogram-initiative/
About Cardiac Insight: Cardiac Insight, Inc. (www.cardiacinsightinc.com) is a U.S. developer of advanced body-worn digital health care information devices for cardiology, respiratory and other complex disease states. The company’s technologies and systems are created using advanced algorithms and software that provide improvements in mean time to diagnosis. Cardiac Insight’s mission is to invent complete and progressive solutions for unmet clinical needs on behalf of physicians, patients, and payers. Cardiac Insight was founded in 2008 and is based in Bellevue, WA.
References
1 Sharma S1, Drezner JA, Baggish A., International Recommendations for Electrocardiographic Interpretation in Athletes, J Am Coll Cardiol. 2017 Feb 28;69(8):1057-1075.
