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| The Matthew Krug Foundation Newsletter |
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| Volume 3 Issue 4 |
Oct 2009-Feb 2010 |
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Greetings!
Welcome to 2010! We hope that 2010 is a great year for all our readers.
Unfortunately, for two young men and their families, 2010 has been a tragic year. In January, in less than four days, the sports world was rocked by the deaths of two of its members, both to the same heart condition.
January 14th, Southern Indiana forward Jeron Lewis, age 21, collapsed in a game against Kentucky Wesleyan and later passed away leaving behind a fiancee and a one-month-old son.
January 17th, Chicago Bears defensive end Gaines Adams, age 26, was taken to a Greenville, S.C., hospital where he was admitted to the emergency room and passed away soon after, leaving behind two children.
These athletes had several things in common. They both died of apparent hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, both were big athletes, and both had no idea that they had this heart condition.
These deaths are just two of the thousands that will occur this year to young people due to sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Their deaths initiated several days of debate in the media regardng the value of screening athletes for heart defects. We are, of course, very saddened by the loss of these young men, but we were encouraged by fact that the media recognizes the need to identify heart issues in athletes before they suffer a SCA.
The Matthew Krug Foundation recognizes that this issue effects more than just athletes. We would like to work with each of you to ensure that deaths due to SCA do not occur at your schools, sports facilities, churches, and clubs. Please read the following articles to learn what the Matthew Krug Foundation is doing to help save lives.
Sincerely,
Stewart Krug
President and Founder |
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| Heart Health Knowledge Challenge
If you are up to it, take the "Heart Health Knowledge Challenge." The information comes from national organizations such as the American Heart Association, Parent Heart Watch, Sudden Cardiac Arrest Association, and Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association. Answers to the questions will be provided at the end of specific newsletter articles.
- What is truncus arteriosus?
- What is the average human heart rate?
- What does the average human heart weigh?
- What is the double walled sac that contains the heart called?
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| MKF Donation - Bishop Guilfoyle Regional Catholic School
On November 4, 2009, the Matthew Krug Foundation was very pleased to donate a Cardiac Science Powerheart ® G3 Plus Fully Automatic Automated External Defibrillator (AED) and AED cabinet to Bishop Guilfoyle Regional Catholic School of Penns Grove, NJ. Pictured from left to right are Ms. Kathy Chesnut, School Principal, Ms. Cynthia Moore, School Nurse, and Stewart Krug, President of the Matthew Krug Foundation. This donation is part of our continuing effort to protect youth where they live and play.
Answer #1: Truncus arteriosus is a congenital (present at birth) defect that occurs due to abnormal development of the fetal heart during the first 8 weeks of pregnancy. The heart begins as a hollow tube, and the chambers, valves, and great arteries develop throughout the first 8 weeks of pregnancy. The aorta and pulmonary artery start as a single blood vessel, which eventually divides and becomes two separate arteries. Truncus arteriosus occurs when the single great vessel fails to separate completely, leaving a connection between the aorta and pulmonary artery. To learn more, clock on the following link: Truncus Arteriosus |
| Delaware schools: Turning his loss into others' gain
Son's death at 16 got dad to fight for defibrillators By REID CHAMPAGNE · Special to The News Journal · February 4, 2010
This article discusses the status of AEDs in Delaware schools and the great work done by the State's Office of Emergency Medical Services under the direction of Mr. Steven Blessing and Ms. Diane Hainsworth. We thank the author, Reid Champagne for including the efforts of The Matthew Krug Foundation. To read the article, click on the title above.
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 CPR and AED Awareness in Delaware Schools
The American Heart Association (AHA) and American Red Cross (ARC) have been saying it for years... In order to save more lives, we need bystanders to respond when a person goes into SCA. These organizations and others have been training folks like you and me in CPR for years, and more recently in the use of an AED. Unfortunately, not enough people are reaching out to be trained.
The Delaware CPR/AED Coalition (Matthew Krug Foundation, AHA, ARC and Youth Heart Watch) have been advocating to the State for CPR and AED Awareness and/or training in Delaware schools for over three years to teach future generations these life-saving skills. Other areas around the country are doing it, so why can't we? We need your support! Please contact the Matthew Krug Foundation if you support this program, and contact your school, the Delaware PTA, the Delaware Department of Education, and your State representatives, and tell them you support CPR/AED awareness training in Delaware schools.
Why is this needed? The answer lies in the two articles below: AED Save Young Lives and Yet We Still are Losing Lives to SCA.
Following are just three articles about training students in CPR and AEDs.
Answer #2: The average human heart rate is 72 beats per minute (bpm). Typical healthy resting heart rate in adults is 60-80 bpm. |
| AEDs Save Young Lives!
The Matthew Krug Foundation is very excited about the continuing number of successful lifesaving stories that are reported on the internet each month. The following are just two of the stories from the last quarter. Click on the story title to view the entire article.
Tennessee basketball player Emmanuel Negedu was recovering at the University of Tennessee Medical Center on Monday night after collapsed at a team workout.
One minute. Around 500 of them fly by on a typical workday. I spent several just waiting for my computer to open this story. Usually, a football field or basketball court are the only places where a lot can happen in one minute. But to Zachary Harper, one minute is everything. For just five weeks ago, on an otherwise routine day at school, one minute is all that stood between the 16-year-old Milford kid and sudden death.
LA CROSSE (WKOW) -- Quick thinking by a University of Wisconsin-La Crosse student saved a fellow student's life. Clare Malinowski was in a kickboxing class at the school's recreation center when she collapsed. Malinowski wasn't breathing and her heart had stopped. Two classmates started performing CPR while a staff member brought in a defibrillator.
Answer #3: The typical heart weighs on average 250 g to 300 g in females and 300 g to 350 g in males. Hearts afflicted with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy can weigh significantly more due to the increased thickness (hypertrophy) of the heart walls. |
| Sadly We Are Still Losing Lives to SCA
How could Bears defensive end Gaines Adams, an apparently otherwise healthy 26-year-old, succumb to cardiac arrest or sudden cardiac death (SCD)? Preliminary findings show he had an enlarged heart (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy), which sounds scary and awful and surely the cause of death. It also sounds like it could have been detected early to prevent such a tragic event.
Answer #4: The heart is enclosed in a double-walled sac called the pericardium. The superficial part of this sac is called the fibrous pericardium. This sac protects the heart, anchors its surrounding structures, and prevents overfilling of the heart with blood. |
Cardiac Science Announces Device Correction and Recall
On November 13, 2009, Cardiac Science of Bothell, Washington, announced it was initiating a voluntary field correction after it was determined certain AEDs may experience a rare product issue in which the AED may not be able to deliver therapy during a resuscitation attempt. This issue is predicted to occur in approximately one in 75,000 AEDs manufactured between August 2003 and August 2009. To learn more details about the device correction, please use the following link:
On February 2, 2010, Cardiac Science announced that it is recalling more than 12,000 AEDs after discovering they "may not be able to deliver therapy during a resuscitation attempt, which may lead to serious adverse events or death." The affected AEDs were manufactured or serviced between October 19, 2009 and January 15, 2010. To learn more, please use the following link: Cardiac Science Notifies AED Customers of Voluntary Medical Device Recall
Schools and other organizations in Delaware who own Cardiac Science AEDs should read the articles, then check the AEDs model number and serial number. If you have additional questions you may contact The Matthew Krug Foundation for help in contacting Cardiac Science. |
Donations
 In order to achieve our goals, we need your support. If you know of a company or an organization that might like to sponsor us, please contact us and we will be happy to discuss our mission with them.
Donate to the Matthew Krug Foundation in honor of a friend or relative in lieu of a birthday or holiday gift. Your donation will help save lives and will be gratefully recognized and acknowledged to both you and the recipient.
To donate now, please send your check to The Matthew Krug Foundation, PO Box 4860, Wilmington, DE 19808. You can also donate online through our Facebook cause page, Support the Matthew Krug Foundation. 100% of your donation will be used to purchase and donate an AED and/or AED cabinet, or provide a discount for a youth's heart screening. Thank you for your support in protecting the lives of youth from sudden cardiac arrest. | |
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Autopsy: Adams died of cardiac arrest