Commotio Cordis – Another Rare Heart Condition That Strikes During Sports
March 25, 2007 by Lei
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
Louis Acompora died at age 14 when a lacrosse ball in play struck his chest between heartbeats. After throwing the ball back, he had an instant cardiac arrest, then died. He was later determined to have commotio cordis, cardiac death caused by blunt force trauma to the precordium, the part of the body over the heart and stomach. Data show that commotio cordis is second only to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in causing sudden death among young, mostly male, athletes.
If a defibrillator had been available, Louis might have been saved. His parents, John and Karen Acompora, have established the Louis Acompora Foundation to help enact laws that require every school to have an automated external defibrillator (AED). John Acompora estimates that at least 30 lives have been saved in New York since such a law was passed.
The News page of the Foundation website has some amazing stories of students, teachers, coaches, and other school personnel who were saved by AED’s at school. It almost makes me think we should all have access to one nearby. A Philips HeartStart Home Defibrillator sells for just over $1,000 at Amazon.com. Wouldn’t it be nice if prices dropped by at least half so we could all own one?
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Tags: aed, defibrillators, commotio cordis, heart, heart disease, cardiac arrest, diseases, illness, health, louis acompora, athletes
Times Union, March 25, 2007
