Heart screening ‘only way to prevent young cardiac death’

By Nadeem Badshah

THE family of a squash champi­on who died from a previously undiagnosed heart condition have been praised for helping to increase the number of people tested in the UK.

Neil Desai, 22, who represented England in squash, died in 2008 from Sudden Adult Death Syndrome.  At that time, around 3,500 young people were being screened every year for cardiac conditions by charity Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY).

Dr Steven Cox, CRY’s chief ex­ecutive, told Eastern Eye: “Young, sudden cardiac death is indis­criminate. It takes young people – in the prime of their lives – from every community and ethnic background across the UK.

“In 80 per cent of these cases, there will have been no signs or symptoms until it is too late. Which is why CRY believes proac­tive heart screening is so vitally important, particularly for those involved in regular physical activity.”

Singer Arjun held a concert for CRY in February in memory of his wife Natasha Sandhu, 28, who died from a sudden cardiac arrest in 2018.

Every week, 12 fit and healthy people aged 35 and under in the UK die suddenly from an undiag­nosed heart defect.

New figures show that 12 years on from the law graduate’s death, CRY’s screening programme now tests around 32,000 people aged between 14 and 35 annually.

The charity’s programme is su­pervised by top sports cardiologist Professor Sanjay Sharma. It in­volves a quick and painless proce­dure called an electrocardiogram (ECG). If a young person is found to have an abnormality, CRY will also conduct an ultrasound on the same day for no extra charge.

CRY has praised the Desai fam­ily for having raised awareness and funds for its screening pro­gramme in Neil’s memory.

Dr Cox said: “Supported by friends and family, they [Desai family] raised more than £35,000 which enabled the screening of more than 800 young people with­in their local communities, as well as donating funds to our world-renowned research programme. It aims to understand the causes of these tragic and sudden cardiac deaths as well as investigating how to identify and prevent them.”

He added: “This year will also see a renewed focus on adding signatures to our successful #MP­support4CRY campaign as we continue to challenge the govern­ment’s recent decision not to rec­ommend cardiac screening in young people. It’s important to note that in Italy, where screen­ing is mandatory for all young people engaged in organised sport, they have reduced the in­cidence of young sudden cardiac death by 89 per cent.”

Dr Cox said: “Most of CRY’s screenings take place in commu­nity settings like schools, colleg­es and sports clubs.

“Indeed, many of the screen­ings supported by the Neil Desai Foundation took place at Tiffin School, Kingston, where Neil at­tended prior to studying for a law degree at Nottingham University.”

The UK National Screening Committee considered the case for screening everyone for risk of sudden cardiac death at its last meeting in November 2019.

However, it decided that the tests available were not accurate enough to identify people with the several conditions which could lead to sudden cardiac death or eliminate those who do not have these defects.

NHS England recently an­nounced high street heart checks as part of its target to prevent tens of thousands of strokes and heart attacks over the next 10 years.

Pharmacists are also set to offer rapid detection and help for con­ditions like heart disease as part of a major revamp of high street pharmacy services.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokeswoman told Eastern Eye: “The death of a young person is tragic. We are determined to help everyone live healthier, hap­pier, more inde­pendent lives.

“The NHS will soon car­ry out mo­bile heart checks as part of a NHS Long Term Plan ambition to prevent tens of thousands of strokes and heart attacks over the next 10 years. However, there is no current evidence to suggest that widespread screening reduces the risk of sudden cardiac arrest.”

Dr Cox said: “The vast majority of CRY’s screenings are funded by families, like the Desai family, who have been affected by a young sud­den cardiac death. There is no charge to the individual when CRY’s mobile cardiac screening service comes to a local venue.

“Now, 12 years on from the tragic death of Neil Desai, who had his whole future ahead of him, anyone between the age of 14 and 35 can book an appointment on­line and register to have a free cardiac investigation over­seen by a specialist.”

On two Satur­days every month, CRY offers free screening to 100 people aged 14-35 at CRY’s National Screen­ing Centre at St George’s in Tooting, London. Vis­it www.test­myheart.org.uk for details.