FERNDALE, Mich. – On a Saturday morning, the gymnasium at Ferndale High School is packed with students but it has nothing to do with a game.
Discussions on heart screenings is a topic mostly reserved for adults however there’s a push to make sure teens know their heart status following reports of students dying from sudden cardiac arrest.
Leo DiPilato, 13, is like most active eighth grade students.
“I play basketball, tennis, soccer -- I’m in traveling soccer,” he said.
So, when his mother suggested he’d get his heart checked he was dismissive at first.
“I didn’t really want to do it,” DiPilato said.
It’s not exactly how most teenagers want to spend their weekend mornings.
Yet, it’s the very thing that could prevent sudden cardiac arrest due to abnormal heart structure or abnormal rhythms.
“When kids don’t have symptoms regarding their heart or something that’s not feeling right, they don’t have a way of getting cardiology testing such as an EKG or photo-focused echocardiogram because insurance doesn’t cover it,” said Jen Shea, manager of the Student Heart Check Program at Corewell Health.
Corewell Health is offering help in detecting young people who are at risk for sudden cardiac arrest. It’s also teaching teens how to do CPR.
This year’s student heart check is held in memory of a former track athlete.
“In 2013, we had a kid Mario Campbell who passed away -- we have a hallway named after him downstairs -- and he passed away from a heart ailment,” said Juan Rickman, director of climate and culture and athletic director for Ferndale Public Schools.
The program targets ages 13 to 18 years old. In DiPilato’s case, a cardiologist confirms his health screenings look good. Now, he plans to get his heart screened every year.
The next heart check will be Feb. 1 at West Bloomfield High School which will be part of a nationwide movement for kids to get their hearts screened.
Corewell Health reports specialists have carried out more than 21,000 heart checks for students since the program began in 2007.