Commotio Cordis and Sudden Cardiac Arrest
Male1: Some cardiac arrest, kid’s trauma playing as the condition.
Male2: Yes, there is a condition known as a Commotio cordis. It is rare. What occurs is that generally in adolescents, if a blow to the chest wall and it does not have to be extremely forceful, it can be getting hit with a baseball or getting hit, was sparring in karate. A blow to the chest at the split seconds right time or wrong time can cause a fatal arrhythmia to occur.
Male1: Is this potential that happens to almost any body?
Male2: Really anybody is at risk for this, particularly it is in adolescents where the chest wall is not fully developed and the muscles in the rib cage are not quite protecting the heart as it would be in someone who is more fully developed.
Male1: If happened and someone who is an expert could have save that person?
Male2: If you are in the situation where someone had a blow to the chest and within seconds they collapse, that would be a perfect situation for use of one of the ADs the automated external defibrillators.
Male1: But the normal CPR when breathe---
Male2: CPR obviously if one of this device sis not there, CPR would be the next best thing to do, however, really if the heart is fibrillating and that is what to treat that is to defibrillate it with an electrical shock.
Male1: So that is a very good reason to have these automatic defibrillators at sporting events, in gyms, or what not because of the fact that the potential is with almost anybody.
Male2: Correct, and also what people are looking at is ways to prevent it. One of the more common situations is in baseball because the ball of the baseball hitting the chest. So the people who are particularly at risk are the pitchers, little league pitchers. They use metal bats, the balls come off very quickly, it can hit the child in the chest and many people are recommending wearing a particularly pitcher’s wearing a hard guards which are a protective---
Male1: Compare these hard guards.
Male2: There are different ones; there are different companies who are making. Some of them fit into a shirt, almost like what---
Male1: That can go on the couple of thing?
Male2: Yes, almost with soccer gollies wear with a built in padding and companies are looking into designing ones that are both effective, comfortable to wear, affordable, and on the retail market there are several help there that people can purchase, certainly baseball pitchers and karate sparring should.
Male1: So any contest would be at risk it, would it? Like hockey, boxing---
Male2: Yes, hockey, football, but those sports, the padding that is typically used. The shoulder guards generally come down to the point protecting the heart. So yes, for all players, hockey players were at risk but the padding that is typically worn in those sports is already protected whereas karate, where they are not wearing a protective gear or in the baseball, other than the catcher, there is really no protection to the chest area.
Male1: So again we go back on automatic defibrillator, that is why including little league would be a very smart thing to do and a good investment.
Male2: I feel so.
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