Teens undergo heart screening after sudden death of Southampton pupil
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Watch report by ITV Meridian's Derek Johnson
A Chandler's Ford woman whose teenage son died suddenly from an undetected heart condition while out running is leading a campaign for young people to undergo heart screening.
Caroline Smith's 16-year-old son Ben, a pupil at King Edward VI School in Southampton, was out running in May 2017 when his heart went into an abnormal rhythm and he collapsed.
Ambulance crews did all they could but were unable to save him.
Now Ben's former school has been offering pupils heart checks.
Ben's mum Caroline said: "Ben was a very active 6ft 4 rugby player - very fit and healthy with no underlying conditions.
"If this sort of testing had been taking place and students were tested as a national programme, those problems would have been caught.
"During the first screening like this, 210 students were tested and five were sent for referral, and unknown to them they had a heart condition they didn't know they had."
Caroline Smith said they had no idea Ben had an underlying heart condition
Caroline set up a memorial fund with the aim to pay for cardiac screening for people in the community aged 14 to 35.
The checks are being carried out by charity CRY (Cardiac Risks in the Young).
Doctors say many heart issues can be easily treated if they are diagnosed in time.
Dozens of students have undergone checks.
Pupil Sophie Keeble attends heart screening
Caroline added: "12 young people die each week of an undetected heart condition.
"My mission is to provide screening to as many young people in our local community to identify those that are at risk from sudden cardiac death to ensure that no family has to go through what I have had to go through and will continue to go through for the rest of my life."
All individuals receive an electrocardiogram (ECG) that examines the electrical activity of the heart, and if required, an echocardiogram, as well as a physical examination.
The ECG is a simple, non-invasive and painless test that will only take a few minutes to complete and is performed by qualified cardiac physiologists.
The ECG results are then examined by a doctor in conjunction with a personal and family history questionnaire, and if a more detailed picture is needed some individuals will be required to undertake a follow-up echocardiogram.
This is an ultrasound scan of the heart that looks at its size, structure and blood flow and takes about 30 minutes to perform.
All results suggesting an abnormality will then be passed to CRY Consultant Cardiologist Professor Sanjay Sharma, a leading expert on inherited cardiac conditions.
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