Thousands have missed the heart test that saved my son
The pandemic has led to a halt in vital screenings for cardiac abnormalities which kill more than 600 people in the UK every year, learns Adrian Monti
More than 24,000 young people have missed out on a potentially life- saving heart test since screenings were stopped at the start of the pandemic in March.
The proactive screening programme, pioneered by the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young ( CRY), is the only way to spot potentially fatal underlying heart abnormalities in otherwise healthy young people, something which kills 12 apparently fit young people each week in the UK.
Professor Sanjay Sharma, a cardiac consultant at St George’s Hospital, London, who oversees CRY’s screening programme, says: “Although the cancellation of these screening clinics is completely understandable to minimise the spread of viral infection, there will be a number of young people who will not receive a diagnosis and treatment of a potentially serious and probably silent cardiac abnormality.”
In the past 25 years, more than 220,000 young people have undergone a simple test to pick up heart abnormalities. Now the charity is calling for large venues which are Covid- safe to be used for screenings until the vaccine has been rolled out and they can return to smaller venues, such as school halls, health centres and St George’s.
Dr Steven Cox, CRY’s CEO, says around 100 people can be tested a day at its screening sessions across the country, but thanks to this pause, which started when everywhere locked down in March, there’s now a waiting list of 40,000 aged 14- 35.
“Every passing month means another 3,000 appointments do not happen and heart conditions are not detected,” he says.
Finn Mason, 14, was among the lucky ones. He attended a screening session last December and was diagnosed on the spot with an abnormal heart rhythm, which in rare cases can prove fatal. At the screenings, participants complete a health questionnaire and are then connected to an electrocardiogram ( ECG) machine. Twelve electrodes record the heart’s activity. If there is an abnormal reading, the participant is immediately referred to a consultant cardiologist present at the screening.
Finn’s mum Niki had heard about the screening from other families at her son’s rugby club. Her eldest son Sean, 16, was tested nine months earlier and was given the all clear. She then registered Finn and daughter Eloise, now 18, for the free screening at St George’s.
“I had a mother’s gut feeling that I should take them for a test even though neither had any signs that anything was wrong,” says Niki, 45, a charity family support worker from Worcester Park, Surrey. Finn’s ECG picked up a distinct and unusual trace, and he was immediately taken for more tests, which indicated Finn had WolffParkinson- White ( WPW) syndrome, which affects around one in every 700 young people.
“I was shocked,” says Niki.
“It was a scary moment, but we were reassured that it could be treated.”
WPW syndrome is an electrical fault which causes the heart to beat too fast. It’s caused by an extra ‘ wire’ of cell tissue between the two top chambers and the lower pumping chambers. In someone with WPW, the electrical pulses go down the extra ‘ wire’ and come back up via the usual route, which can set up a circuit of rapid electrical activity. Symptoms can include dizziness, chest pain, shortness of breath and a pounding heart.
Finn was immediately referred to London’s Royal Brompton Hospital in
March. In April, he began suffering palpitations. He was advised to stop vigorous exercise and wear a heart monitor for 48 hours to capture any abnormal heart episodes.
Luckily, the monitor managed to record one which occurred when he went on a gentle bike ride.
“After his ride, I could see Finn’s heart pounding in his chest and the colour draining from his face,” says Niki, who called an ambulance. His heart rate had been 289bpm, compared to his resting heart rate of under 60bpm. His heart rhythm stabilised, so he was sent home the same day.
“Finn’s condition was escalating and his consultant said we had no choice but to have heart surgery,” says Niki.
In late September, he had a three- hour procedure at the Royal Brompton. Long wires, called catheters, were threaded into a vein in his groin and guided to his heart. Once in the correct place in the heart, ablation – which uses a powerful beam radio frequency – was used to destroy the extra ‘ wire’ of tissue.
“Finn came home the same day,” says Niki. “He didn’t need any medication or painkillers and suffered only slight soreness in his groin for a day or two. After a week off, he went back to school, and after a month he slowly resumed playing sport. Now he’s back doing all the things he loves.”
Finn is due to have another ECG before Christmas, but his consultant is confident his WPW has been cured.
“It’s chilling to think how different the outcome could have been had he not gone to the screening that day,” says Niki. “The sooner testing can resume, the better for so many others.”
● For more information about screenings and the work of Cardiac Risk in the Young, go to c- r- y. org. uk
It’s chilling to think how different the outcome could have been for Finn