Heart screenings available for youth in Merced County

Teens and young adults in Merced County have a chance next month to undergo a heart screening, a procedure most usually wouldn’t receive during routine physicals or check-ups.

Merced and Stanislaus county residents between ages 12 and 25 can participate in the Teen Heart Screening event on April 9, said Michelle Komos, school nurse for the Hilmar Unified School District.

“We’re targeting, generally, kids who need physicals to play sports or only go to the doctor when they get sick,” Komos said. “Our goal is to make sure our athletes and kids in this area don't die of cardiac arrest. That's why it’s important to do it at this age.”

Hilmar Unified School District is collaborating with the Via Heart Project, a San Francisco-based nonprofit focused on decreasing sudden cardiac arrests, to bring the event into the San Joaquin Valley.

The event is being sponsored by Livingston Community Health and Emanuel Medical Center.

A total of 750 people will be able to receive screenings at the April 9 event, to be held from 9 a.m to 3 p.m. at Hilmar High School, Komos said. As of Monday, about 300 spots were still open.

Based on statistics of previous youth heart screenings, five to seven people screened at the event will be found to have a previously undiagnosed heart condition, a statement from the Via Heart Project said.

“Most kids, unless something traumatic happens, they don't even know they have a cardiatric condition,” Komos said.

During the event, attendees will have their blood pressure, height and weight taken, and go through their health history with a physician or registered nurse, Komos said. Then, they’ll learn how to do hands-on CPR and automated external defibrillator, or AED, training.

Everyone will receive an electrocardiogram, or EKG, and then discuss their results with a cardiologist, Komos said. If there is any indication of a heart issue, they’ll have an echocardiogram, or echo, she said.

“This is above what a general practice doctor would do,” Komos said.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in Merced County, according to the 2016 Community Health Assessment from the Merced County Department of Public Health. Physicians have said life-style changes and preventative care could greatly reduce such deaths.

Merced County is ranked 45th out of the state's 58 counties on heart disease death rates, according to the report. More than 85 percent of adults in the county reported having one or more risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

Although deaths related to heart disease are most common in adults, according to the Mayo Clinic, sudden deaths in people under 35 often are due to undiscovered heart defects or overlooked heart abnormalities.

“When these sudden deaths occur, it's often during physical activity, such as playing a sport, and more often occurs in males than in females,” the Mayo Clinic said.

To register to be screened or to be a volunteer for the event go to www.viaheartproject.org.

This story was originally published March 27, 2017 at 5:26 PM with the headline "Heart screenings available for youth in Merced County."