Annual physical can prevent injuries

Doctors can identify medical issues before they become tragedies.

The incidents have been as shocking as they are tragic.

The most recent occurred just days ago when Jon Ross Snell, a seventh-grader, collapsed during football practice at George Walton Academy. He remains hospitalized in critical condition. Adam Smith, a 16-year-old Buford High School varsity basketball player, died last weekend after collapsing following a workout.

Doctors say such incidents underscore why annual physical exams are a crucial part of the back-to-school season. participation physical evaluation form, issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics, said Ralph Swearngin, executive director of the Georgia High School Association.

That form, he said, includes a health history and evaluations that are a normal part of a physical exam.

“Medical doctors tell me that by looking at those things, they can identify kids who might have medical problems, such as sickle cell trait, that would keep them from participating in sports,” Swearngin said. “If any telltale signs — a heart murmur or history of family members dying young with cardiac problems, for instance — pop up, they refer students back to their family doctor or to a specialist.”

Even so, doctors say, parents should make their child’s pediatrician their first line of defense against sports injuries.

“Two of the leading causes of sudden cardiac death are inherited,” said Dr. David Marshall, medical director of sports medicine at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. “That means family history is extremely important in preventing hypertrophic cardiomyopathy [heart disease] and Marfan syndrome.”

While there are benefits to mass health screenings done at school, Marshall said there are limitations because the physician doesn’t have access to a student’s medical history, family medical history or parental verification of that history, items a child may forget to mention on the sports phys-