Alonso Death Puts Spotlight On Physicals

[Kathy64]

Re: Alonso Death Puts Spotlight On Physicals

I am the mother of Matthew Miulli who died January 19th, 2005 at Alonso High School in Tampa.
Matt was conditioning for baseball tryouts, when he suddenly collapsed.
It is still unbearable to live with the pain of losing my son. He was a healthy 17 year old that I dropped off at school that Wednesday morning. The next time I saw him he was on the ground, fireman trying to revive him. Despite their efforts, Matt lost his fight for his life, in front of my eyes.
This is why physicals need to be done before any child steps out on the field to engage in any practice, tryout or conditioning. In fact, its a Florida law. If Matt would have had his physical done when it was supposed to be done, Matt would probably still be here. All the running he was doing for weeks before, was causing his heart to get enlarged. However, Matt never once showed any symtoms. Until that afternoon.

[hcma]

Copyright 2005 The Tribune Co. Publishes The Tampa Tribune
Tampa Tribune (Florida)

January 21, 2005 Friday
FINAL EDITION

SECTION: NATION/WORLD; Pg. 1

LENGTH: 822 words

HEADLINE: Alonso Death Puts Spotlight On Physicals

BYLINE: DONNA KOEHN and ROZEL LEE, The Tampa Tribune

DATELINE: TAMPA

BODY:

By DONNA KOEHN and ROZEL LEE

The Tampa Tribune

TAMPA - The sudden death of a seemingly fit teenage baseball player Wednesday
left coaches questioning athletic policies and parents wondering whether their
own children are at risk.

The cause of death of 17-year- old Alonso High School junior Matthew Miulli
is not known yet, although sheriff's officials said a pre-existing medical
condition might have contributed to it. He died during preseason baseball
conditioning after running a mile on a track in the football stadium.

Although medical releases signed by a physician are required before the first
official practice date for any sport in Hillsborough County schools, they are
not needed for preseason workouts. It's not unusual for coaches to put
prospective athletes through workouts that include running, weightlifting and
endurance drills.

Eric Coris, team physician with the sports medicine clinic at the University
of South Florida, says that does not happen at his school.

"At the collegiate level, the players can't step on the field without"
medical release forms, he says. "They can't put on the uniform; they can't put
on the pads."

Even though they don't have to, some high school coaches require the forms
for preseason practice.

A close call caused Terry Brockland, Sickles High School's wrestling coach,
to see the value in requiring physicals for conditioning.

"I had this kid who was lethargic at workouts every day," Brockland says.
"Once he had a physical, it turns out he had a heart condition. That's always
every coach's biggest fear. What's the harm in getting it early, before you
start?"

Sudden Death Rare

Even with a signed physical form, there are no guarantees, says Coris, who
teaches at USF's medical school and has done research on the sudden death of
young athletes.

"When something like this happens, parents start being afraid Johnny is going
to drop dead on the field," he says. "The first thing to remember is that this
is very rare."

Of the approximately 120 million boys and girls who participated in high
school sports in the United States during the past 20 years, there have been
nine deaths of baseball players. In that time, 120 football players and 80
basketball players died, according to a study by the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The leading cause of young athletes' sudden death is hypertrophic
cardiomyopathy, a heart condition that almost never gives a warning. It's most
common in boys of about age 17 or 18, seemingly caused when the heart "suddenly
grows out of control," Coris says.

"The presenting condition typically is the sudden death," he says.

Coronary anomalies, genetic conditions also involving the heart, are the
second-leading cause and also rarely present symptoms.

However, there are warning signs parents should heed: chest pain,
palpitations, unusual shortness of breath, dizziness, fainting and a family
history of sudden death before age 50.

Tampa pediatrician Katherine Lewis says parents must be diligent about
disclosing any unusual symptoms.

"I think some things just go out of their minds, things that may have
happened a year ago," she says. "But I recently had a child coming in for a
sports physical whose mother mentioned her [heart] condition. We did an EKG and
found out the child had it, too."

Some Tests Useless

Coris says electrocardiograms and other tests can be relatively useless in
detecting most of the causes of sudden death.

"Not only are they not cost-effective, they have not shown to be effective in
picking them all up," he says. "That's the scary part."

Some coaches said they think Miulli's death demonstrates a need for certified
trainers in Hillsborough County schools. Only Wharton High School has one.

Tim Coker, the school's physical education department head and team trainer,
said a trainer can teach injury prevention, care for injuries and serve as a
final check on medical forms.

He acknowledges this likely wouldn't have helped Miulli.

"Something like what happened at Alonso, we can't prevent that," he said.

He joined other coaches Thursday in expressing a hope that the school board
would consider requiring physicals before workouts begin.

(CHART) SUDDEN DEATHS

* Between 15 and 20 high school athletes in the United States every year die
sudden, initially unexplained deaths, according to research by the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

* A study by the university also found that nine high school baseball players
during a 20-year period ending in 2002 collapsed and died suddenly.

* Death rates for high school athletes in other sports were higher, with 120
football players and 80 basketball players dying suddenly during the same
period.

Reporter Donna Koehn can be reached at (813) 259-8264. Reporter Rozel Lee can
be reached at (813) 259-8425.

RELATED STORY, Page 4: Students struggle with grief and guilt.

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