Submitted by SCAFoundation on Tue, 12/06/2011 - 8:45pm

Members of 65 sports and health organizations met Tuesday in Washington, D.C., at the third annual Youth Sports Safety Summit, to review a new position statement issued by the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) titled "Preventing Sudden Death in Sports." To be published in the February 2012 issue of the Journal of Athletic Training, the statement outlines 10 major health conditions and causes of sudden death among athletes, while also providing updated recommendations to ensure better prevention and treatment of sports injuries.

According to NATA, which hosted the summit, this is the first time an association has provided such condensed information in one document to help medical professionals, coaches, parents, and others make more effective and efficient return-to-play and care decisions. While concussion legislation has passed in 36 states, concussions are not the only problem in youth sports. In fact, the leading cause of death from youth sports is sudden cardiac arrest, which is addressed in the statement along with asthma, catastrophic brain injuries, cervical spine injuries, diabetes, exertional heat stroke, exertional hyponatremia, exertional sickling, lightning and head-down contact in football.

High school athletes suffer two million injuries every year, NATA says, resulting in 500,000 doctor visits and 30,000 hospitalizations. In 2010, 50 young athletes died on the playing field, and 40 have died so far in 2011 — including six athletes and one adult coach in August alone.

“Young athletes are suffering chronic and sometimes catastrophic injury from sports,” says summit moderator and NATA president Marjorie J. Albohm. “Only 42 percent of high schools have access to an athletic trainer, often the primary health care provider when a young athlete goes down on the playing field."

The "Preventing Sudden Death in Sports" position statement includes the following:

Sudden Cardiac Arrest

  • Recognition is key to treatment: Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) should be suspected in any athlete who has collapsed and is unresponsive.
  • Advance preparation is critical to survival once SCA has occurred: Public access to automated external defibrillators and established emergency action plans greatly improve the likelihood of survival.
  • Access to early defibrillation is essential: A goal of less than three to five minutes from the time of collapse to delivery of the first shock from an AED is strongly recommended.
  • The new position statement incorporates the 2010 American Heart Association CPR guideline updates, with an emphasis on chest compressions and AED application as soon as possible.

"The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation is pleased to be a member of the Youth Sports Safety Alliance," said Mary M. Newman, MS, Foundation president. "We support Alliance efforts to raise awareness about sudden cardiac arrest among student athletes and their families, and to help save lives."