On Wednesday, February 27, the Close the Gap campaign will be raising awareness of heart disease risk factors at the NC State v. Florida State men’s basketball game. Heart disease is the number one killer in North Carolina, accounting for more than a quarter of deaths in the state.
Boston Scientific’s Cardiac Rhythm Management division, has partnered with the Association of Black Cardiologists (ABC), Black Coaches and Administrators (BCA), WomenHeart, the Athlete’s Heartbeat, the National Coalition of Pastors’ Spouses, several National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) schools (including NC State) and the NCAA itself in launching Close the Gap earlier this month to address disparities in cardiovascular care for the underserved patient populations of women, black Americans and Latino Americans.
A couple weeks ago, a twenty year old basketball player at a university in Ohio passed away from sudden cardiac death and just this past Tuesday, a star girl’s high school player tragically collapsed and died during a regional playoff game in Baton Rouge. The Close the Gap campaign is educating coaches, young athletes and their parents that with simple heart screenings, many of these deaths can be prevented. A key goal of the Close the Gap campaign is to raise awareness of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) as a leading cause of death among young athletes. Statistics reveal that in the United States, a young competitive athlete dies from sudden cardiac arrest every three or four days. The average age of those who die is 17.5 years, ninety percent of them are male, and more than half are black.
The Close the Gap campaign will feature PSAs running throughout the game and display a booth with information on heart disease and sudden cardiac death.
For more information please see the press release below and visit this link: www.heart-health-disparities.org.
-from Boston Scientific, Rachel Lonsdale
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