Volunteer medical personnel from the New Mexico Heart Institute, a cardiovascular medicine and surgery organization headquartered in Albuquerque, were in Silver City on Saturday August 14 to provide free cardiovascular health screenings for the student-athletes of Western New Mexico University. The athletic teams that were evaluated included the football team, as well as the volleyball and softball teams. In all, 127 students were evaluated.

The purpose of the screening is to prevent sudden cardiac death in the athletes. The screenings are recommended for competitive athletes according to the American Heart Association.

Sudden cardiac death in athletes can be prevented in many cases, if not most, with proper screening by medical personnel. The New Mexico Heart Institute sent a team of three such personnel to perform the screenings: a cardiologist, Dr. Adam Ronan, medical assistant, Ramona Rodriguez, and Martha Mowry.

According to Dr. Ronan, the incidence of sudden cardiac death in athletes is relatively rare, occurring in approximately 1 in 50,0000 athletes. However, it is still the most frequent cause of death during athletic competition. For example, sudden cardiac death occurs twice as frequently as traumatic causes of death on the playing field.

Dr. Ronan went on to explain that the most common cause of sudden cardiac death in athletes is "malignant arrhythmias," which are dangerous heart rhythms that do not allow the heart to pump blood. In the United States, the most common genetic condition that results in such malignant arrhythmias is a condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

The volunteers enjoyed their time screening the athletes of WNMU and hope to return to screen the students in the winter and spring athletic programs as well.