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Important PSA for athletes, and parents of student athletes: Post #COVID infection (even mild) there are serious risks to quickly returning to sports. What is #myocarditis, and why is it important? 1/
Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart muscle that can disrupt electrical activity, in some cases causing arrhythmia and sudden death. We know from MRI scans that 15% of athletes had signs of myocarditis when scanned 11-53 days post initial illness. 2/ https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamacardiology/fullarticle/2770645">https://jamanetwork.com/journals/...
Also, 30% of that group had signs of prior injury to the heart - even though many of those scanned had mild COVID symptoms and some had no symptoms at all. But when they resume activity and exert their heart muscle, they& #39;re at risk. 3/
Myocarditis heals over time but can take weeks - or longer with severe COVID. But a lot of young adults & kids go right back to sports when they feel better. And that& #39;s the tricky thing: because you can have this injury to your heart and feel fine, but be at risk of death. 4/
The @AAP has put out guidelines to help with safe return to sports, but we are hearing that the word is not out. And we understand, there& #39;s a lot of information out there! 5/ https://services.aap.org/en/pages/2019-novel-coronavirus-covid-19-infections/clinical-guidance/covid-19-interim-guidance-return-to-sports/">https://services.aap.org/en/pages/...
Briefly, see your MD: Athletes need to wait a minimum of 14 days after symptoms resolve (or 14 total if no symptoms), get an EKG they had any COVID symptoms, and if they have moderate/severe COVID or any signs of myocarditis, they need an evaluation by a cardiologist. 6/
And this underscores the importance of getting tested! If anyone around you has covid-19 or you have any symptoms of it, your next step should be to get a #test. You need to know.
