Siemens on TV: Smart Heart Scans for Athletes

Almost every summer, a seemingly healthy high school student-athlete collapses without warning from a sudden heart attack. In fact, the American Medical Association estimates as many as one in 200,000 student athletes will suffer from sudden cardiac arrest. New advanced technology could help prevent many of these tragedies from taking place.

The majority of these collapses are caused by an enlarged heart, a condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The condition usually goes undetected until it is too late. But thanks to advanced ultrasound imaging that gives better images of one’s heart, doctors can often identify heart defects before they become problematic.

A program called Smart Heart Scans for Athletes is offering echocardiograms at reduced costs - sometimes even free - in hopes of helping to scan the estimated 5 million student athletes across America. According to the American Heart Association, 36 percent of athletes who died while competing in a sport had probable or definite hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.



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