LaxTV Forums | A Forum About The MCLA

As we are approaching the one year anniversary of the tragic passing of Cornell Senior Captain and D Man George Boiardi allegedly from commotio cordis due to being struck in the chest by a lacrosse ball
Which teams now have a defribrillator available at games and practice?

Deleted for ignorant content.

The alumni of the men's and women's lacrosse progrmas at Santa Clara donated a defibrillator with proceeds from last seasons alumni game. It is now at all home games and practices for both teams but will travel with the men's team if both teams play at the same time in different locations.

We will be bringing it on our spring reak trip to Boston next week as well.

I am sure that Laxfan has the best of intentions however you are some what misinformed on the subject. In addition to the numbers cited in the text below it should be noted that most experts believe that misdiagnosis and under-reporting has severly reduced the number of reported cases of Commotio Cordis.

Official Statement from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association
on Commotio Cordis

According to the U.S. Commotio Cordis Registry, since 1998, 130 athletes have died from blunt force injury to the heart (Commotio Cordis). Of those, 70 were children ages 4-18, according to the Heart Center at TUFTS New England Medical Center.

In an effort to educate the public about the potential risks physically active youth can face, the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) Age-Specific Task Force recommends that parents and coaches take proactive steps to protect their athletes against Commotio
Cordis.

Commotio Cordis is caused by a blow to the chest (directly over the heart) that occurs between heart contractions. The blunt force causes a lethal abnormal heart rhythm. The following suggestions can help prevent Commotio Cordis and keep young athletes safe.
1) Encourage all coaches and officials to become trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), automatic external defibrillator (AED) use, and first aid.
2)Establish an emergency action plan at all athletic venues. Parents, coaches, and officials should be involved in these plans. (NATA’s Position Statement on Emergency Planning in Athletics -www.nata.org/publicinformation/files/emergencyplanning.pdf - is a useful
resource.)
3) Use all-purpose sports chest protectors during practices and games. (Note: NATA recommends continued research in this area because current information is limited. However, use of properly fitted, quality chest protectors are recommended to reduce the risk of injury to the athlete.)
4) Ensure all protective equipment fits properly and is used as intended by the manufacturer.
5) Teach athletes how to protect themselves against chest injuries.
6) Maintain an even and clean playing surface.

Links To learn more about Commotio Cordis go to:
www.momsteam.com
www.teamsofangels.org
http://www.la12.org/articles/commotio_cordis.htm
http://www.tufts-nemc.org/medicine/card ... cordis.htm
http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic3019.htm
http://www.usabaseball.com/commotio_cordis.html

I know I have one wherever our team is. I will carry it to Cali this week as well.
Check with your Recreation Dept. Many of them are now purchasing them for their clubs to "check-out" for games. They do require about a 10 minute training session and are very easy to use.
If your Rec Dept do not have them I would suggest bringing it up to them.

I wish we had one....right now Med kits are hard tome come by sometimes, let alone trainers that are trained and posses a Defib.....

Maybe a league rule would actually help us out in this department...provided there was a way to pass that cost onto the school

bbandlax,
I stand corrected. Thanks for the info. I had never heard of such a thing until the event last year, obviously it occurs more often than I realized. Thanks for the education - you're never too old too learn.

With the news on Liberty U tonight, it has certainly cast a pall over everything - kind of puts it all in perspective and has saddened me greatly. I know a lot of people on here are parents, and we can all relate to the fear we have that something like this can happen when our kids hit the road for a trip. I just hope that everything turns out OK for the kids and their families.

I haven't gone through all the old posts, but I believe there were some things that were inconsistent with Commotio Cortis in Boiardi's death. I believe electronic defibrillation was in fact used. However, because there wasn't an autopsy, the actual cause of death was never discovered. In any fashion, it is a serious issue and most trainers should carry AED's with them to the games. If not, it should soon be mandated. These things are more important than matching helmets and gloves. Most of the newer ones are usable by anyone who can read (hence 'Automatic Electronic Defibrillator'), and will not even administer a shock if not placed correctly or if a shock is not needed.

Scottie, Thanks for getting the info out there. I know here at BYU the club sports have 2 AED that were donated to us. We have one at all practices and games at home and try to take one when we travel. Hopefully they never get used!

This might be the best thread ever on USLIA. I have a question. I coach a youth team and I think having an AED on the field would be a great idea. I called our local fire rescue team and they told me that a portable AED runs about $2500. Is there any place I can contact about getting an AED donated or at least getting it at a reduced cost?

What about training?

There is a CPR/AED training that can be done so that the AED is used properly. I strongly recommend that all coaches, team staff, and medical staff be CPR/AED certified because you never know when you'll need help in this area. As far as getting one donated it's just a matter of finding someone with the funding available to do it and the desire to help out. If I were you I'd go to the parents in the youth league and present them with the facts about how AEDs can be beneficial in an emergency situation, they basically sell themselves. As a parent I know I would be happy to donate money towards the purchase of an AED in order to protect my child.

Here are some helpful links on the topic;

American Heart Association (discusses training) http://www.americanheart.org/presenter. ... er=3011859

American Red Cross:
http://www.redcross.org/services/hss/courses/aed.html

A web site that specializes in AED's - starting at $1,250
http://www.americanaed.com/

Amazon.com for the Philips HeartStart Home unit:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/ ... 48-9592701

A review of available models:
http://www.themedsupplyguide.com/aed/

These are just a few of the links I found when I googled on AED's. This has been a very informative discussion and my thanks to the others that have helped educate this "old-school" knucklehead!

What is the NCAA's stance on this matter?

I think that if there is such a threat, which was sadly proven to us through the unfortunate death of George Boiard, then we should all take steps to prevent it from happening in the future.

The NCAA doesn't have an official stance, nor does the USILA, the MDIA or US Lacrosse. It's not the kind of thing they will get involved in because it would open them up to liability if they required it (or possibly even if they recommended it), and someone died when one wasn't present.

We definitely have one at every practice and game, home or away.

I think St. Olaf has 5 of them on campus. The lacrosse team cannot take one when they travel, but on campus they do have access. We also have student EMTs on call. They have one, also public safety, and the training staff have them.