Summary of Scholarly Article

In the article “Mandatory ECG Screening of Athletes: Is This Question Resolved Now?” Roy J. Shepard resolved the controversy notion of mandating ECG for all high school and college athletes.  He began his journey by over viewing many studies performed in the past.  For example, Italy mandated ECG screening and they showed a decrease of Sudden Cardiac Deaths (SCD) among Italian athletes.  The Italian study also developed clear understanding of ECG abnormalities, current calculations for a lower and beneficial costs, and comparisons between clinical examination alone or clinical examination with ECG screening.  Although the Italian study presented evidence of effective ECG screening, other sources contradict their claim.  A variety of other studies showed that few athletes are at risk for SCD and the screening only detects a few with SCD.  The studies have found that restricting physical activity has no relation with the disease.  Prolonged activity versus no activity does not decrease the chance of SCD.  After analyzing various studies, Shepard provided key points to build a more successful programming.  One key element is to focus on testing procedures which will provide an increase in test specify and reduce false positive rates.  In analyzing all the data, Shepard has concluded that mandating ECG screening would be inappropriate.  The nation’s time and money should be engaged in preventive medicine for SCD in young athletes.