Letter: Require defibrillators at games

• Published: Feb 27, 2008 - Page: 6B

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The news of the sudden and tragic death of Glen Oaks student and basketball star Shannon Veal was difficult to hear. The tragedy for her family, friends and coaches is impossible to fathom.

The published autopsy results suggest an “enlarged heart” led to her untimely death, a condition known as cardiomyopathy in medical circles.

Cardiomyopathies have a variety of causes, from genetic conditions to viral infections. In athletes, the cardiomyopathy frequently involves thickening of the heart’s muscular walls. This usually goes unnoticed, without symptoms in even the most well-trained athlete.

In the setting of intense physical activity, the condition can give rise to lethal arrhythmias — abnormally fast and chaotic heartbeats. The result is a rapid loss of blood flow to the brain and collapse.

Rapid defibrillation, a procedure in which an electrical shock is given to the heart to restore normal rhythm, is the best chance for survival.

Today, automatic external defibrillators are available on planes, in malls and in other places heavily populated. These devices are simple to deploy, as they are designed for use by untrained or minimally trained bystanders.

AEDs can be quickly applied to a person in distress and will automatically sense the need to provide a shock. The device then applies the appropriate treatment. Some studies have suggested that AEDs are successful in restoring a normal rhythm up to 50 percent of the time.

The American Heart Association has suggested that the widespread availability of AEDs could increase the survivability of cardiac arrest by up to 20 percent, well above the current rate of survival.

A Texas law, passed in 2007, mandates the availability of an AED and a trained user in every high school in the state. It would seem that the time is right for Louisiana to consider a similar measure.

Louisiana law requires AEDs in many places, but not at high school athletic events.

There is no way to know if an AED, immediately available at courtside, would have saved Shannon Veal. However, at a cost of less than $2,500, an AED might have made a difference.

The death of a young athlete from a cardiac condition is rare, but the effect of such a catastrophic event is life-changing for all directly involved.

I would hope that a move toward placing AEDs at all high school athletic events might be a legacy from Shannon Veal and her family to the people of Louisiana.