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Colorado Teen Dies After Hit On Rugby Field - Middle School Reading Article Worksheet Page 2

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Colorado Teen Dies After Hit on Rugby Field

Notes on my thoughts,

"Athletes are at higher risk than the general population because they exercise

reactions and questions as I

more," Dr. Jonathan Drezner of the University of Washington said.

read:

"And ironically, although we know that exercise is a healthy benefit for all of us,

in some persons with an underlying heart condition exercise can actually be the

trigger for a sudden cardiac arrest event," he said.

Hammerdorfer's death comes just days after Michigan high school basketball

player Wes Leonard collapsed and died after scoring the winning shot for his

team, leaving his coach, team and the community devastated.

Teenagers and young people dying of heart failure is far more common than

might be expected: An average of 40 young athletes die from heart disease in

the United States is per year, or approximately one death every nine days.

Parent Heart Watch is one support group that is trying to encourage awareness

and preventative measures that will avert such tragedies. They say young

athletes should get early and mandatory screening with an Electrocardiograph

(EKG), which looks at the activity of the heart over time.

Other groups also want schools and teams to have heart defibrillators at games,

and have coaches and parents learn CPR.

The European Society of Cardiology and International Olympic Committee

endorsed standardized screenings that have been credited with lowering the

death rate in Italy.

But medical groups in the United States have recommended against

implementation of such a system, saying the high costs outweigh the benefits.

Arguments against standardized screenings include the cost of EKGs and the

feelings that false positive tests suggesting someone is at risk, when they are

not.

Some experts say the money would be better spent putting automatic external

defibrillators at every sporting event than on EKG screenings.

Dr. Douglas Zipes, editor of Heart Rhythm, told ABC News that to cover the

$1,200 cost of a defibrillator, "you could get 120 fathers to kick in 12 bucks

each."

Any renewed focus is too late for Matthew Hammendorfer, who friends say was

always smiling and always ready with a joke. Now, many are calling for new

attention to a very serious and deadly problem.

Sandell, C. & Dolak, K. Colorado Teen Dies After Hit on Rugby Field. . 6 Mar.

2011. Web. 7 Mar. 2011.

Colorado Teen Dies After Hit On Rugby Field - Middle School Reading Article Worksheet Page 2