>>>
>>> SO
>>> SO AS
>>> SO AS WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT, THE PAC-12 AND BIG 10
MADE IT OFFICIAL.
SEEMS LIKE IT IS JUST A MATTER
OF TIME BEFORE TOP CONFERENCES
FOLLOW.
FOLLOW.
FOLLOW. NO COLLEGE FOOTBALL THIS FALL.
PART OF THE EQUATION IS THIS.
ESPN REPORTS AT LEAST FIVE
STUDENT ATHLETES HAVE A RARE
HEART CONDITION THAT IS
POTENTIALLY LINKED TO COVID-19.
SO DR. PAYAL KOHLI JOINS US TO
DISCUSS A SERIOUS COMPLICATION
AND THE POTENTIAL FOR
CONSEQUENCES FOR STUDENT
ATHLETES.
ATHLETES.
ATHLETES. SO DR. KOHLI, YOU ARE A
CARDIOLOGIST.
CARDIOLOGIST. HOW IS THIS BEING CONNECTED TO
COVID-19?
COVID-19?
COVID-19? >> TOM, YOU ARE RIGHT.
POST VIRAL MYOCARDITIS IS
TRIGGERED BY THE VIRUS.
WHAT WE ARE SEEING WITH COVID-
19 IS HIGHER THAN WHAT WE WOULD
SEE WITH REGULAR VIRAL
MYOCARDITIS.
MYOCARDITIS. THERE COULD BE TWO POSSIBLE
REASONS FOR THIS.
ONE, THE VIRUS IS THOUGHT TO BE
CARDIOTROPIY.
CARDIOTROPIY. THE VIRUS COULD BE INDUCING
DIRECT DAMAGE TO THE HEART
MUSCLE CAUSING THIS
INFLAMMATION.
INFLAMMATION. AND THE SECOND WHICH WE HAVE
TALKED ABOUT BEFORE IS THAT THE
IMMUNE SYSTEM GOES INTO
OVERDRIVE BECAUSE OF THE VIRUS
IN THE BODY AND THAT OVERDRIVE
CAUSES DAMAGE TO THE HEART
MUSCLE.
MUSCLE.
MUSCLE. THE PROBLEM WITH THIS ISSUE
WITH THE HEART IS IT CAN CREATE
SCAR TISSUE IN THE HEART WHICH
CAN DISRUPT THE ELECTRIC
SIGNALS OF THE HEART AND CAUSE
ARRHYTHMIAS.
ARRHYTHMIAS. THIS IS PARTICULARLY
PROBLEMATIC FOR ATHLETES
BECAUSE WHEN YOU ARE OUT ON THE
FIELD PLAYING SPORTS, YOUR
SYSTEM IS REVVED UP, YOU HAVE
THE STRESS HORMONES.
IT CAN ADDRESS THE ARRHYTHMIAS.
WE KNOW FROM DATA ATHLETES ARE
MORE LIKELY TO CATCH AND HAVE
COMPLICATIONS FROM VIRAL
MYOCARDITIS.
MYOCARDITIS. >> SO ARE ATHLETES WITH
STRONGER AND MORE TAXED HEARTS
AT GREATER RISK.
CAN WE TEST FOR IT IN THIS ERA
OF CORONAVIRUS?
OF CORONAVIRUS? >> Reporter: THERE ARE THINGS
WE CAN DO TO TEST FOR
MYOCARDITIS.
MYOCARDITIS. WHAT IS TRICKY IS THE REASON
THEY CANCELED THE ENTIRE SEASON
OVER THIS.
OVER THIS. MANY OF THE ATHLETES HAVING THE
MYOCARDITIS COMPLICATION ARE
NOT DECLARING THEMSELVES
CLINICALLY.
CLINICALLY. SO OF THE 12 STUDENT ATHLETES
DIAGNOSED SO FAR AND HAVE IS A
BLOOD TEST THAT TELLS US THAT
THEY HAVE DAMAGE TO THE HEART
MUSCLE FOLLOWING A COVID
INFECTION, ONLY SIX OF THEM HAD
MILD SYMPTOMS AND SIX OF THEM
HAD NO SYMPTOMS.
WITHOUT THE SYMPTOMS TO GUIDE
US IT IS HARD TO KNOW WHICH
ONES ARE AFFECTED AND WHICH ARE
NOT.
NOT.
NOT. CARDIAC MRI GIVES US A CLOSE
UPLOOK AT THE HEART.
THERE ARE RANDOM PEOPLE, 78% OF
THEM HAD AN ABNORMAL HEART MRI
WHICH 60% OF THEM HAVING ACTIVE
CARDIAC INFLAMMATION AND MANY
OF THEM HAVING NO OR MINIMAL
SYMPTOMS.
SYMPTOMS.
SYMPTOMS. IT DOESN'T DECLARE ITSELF.
>> AND IF YOU GO UP THE LADDER,
PLAYERS, COACHES, ATHLETIC
DEPARTMENTS, UNIVERSITIES,
DEPARTMENTS, UNIVERSITIES, FANS, WANT FOOTBALL TO BE
PLAYED.
PLAYED.
PLAYED. BUT, I MEAN, THERE ARE A LOT OF
ISSUES THAT COME WITH THAT.
THIS OVERARCHING ISSUE OF
HEALTH HAS TO BE PARAMOUNT
DON'T YOU SAY?
>> Reporter: I ABSOLUTELY
AGREE, TOM.
AGREE, TOM. AS WE LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS
VIRUS AND MORE ABOUT ITS
COMPLICATIONS WITH RESPECT TO
THE HEART, I DO THINK WE CAN
THINK ABOUT HOW TO GET PLAYERS
BACK TO PLAY SAFELY.
SO MANY EXPERTS, HEART EXPERTS
HAVE GOTTEN TOGETHER AND
DEVELOPED A CONSENSUS STATEMENT
FOR SUGGESTED SCREENINGS FOR
PRO ATHLETES WHO HAVE
CONTRACTED COVID TO RETURN BACK
TO PLAY.
TO PLAY.
TO PLAY. SO MAKE SURE THERE IS NO RED
FLAG THERE.
FLAG THERE. THEY ARE NOT HAVING SHORTNESS
OF BREATH OR SWELLING IN THE
ANKLES.
ANKLES.
ANKLES. THE SECOND IS TO DO AN EKG.
THE THIRD IS TO CHECK FOR A
VERY SENSITIVE BLOOD TEST OF A
CHEMICAL ONLY COMES FROM THE
HEART.
HEART.
HEART. IF
HEART. IF IT IS POSITIVE, THERE HAS
BEEN DAMAGE TO THE HEART
MUSCLE.
MUSCLE.
MUSCLE. AND THE FOURTH IS TO DO AN ECHO
CARDIOGRAM, AN ULTRASOUND OF
THE HEART TO MAKE SURE IT IS
PUMPING NORMALLY AND RELAXING
NORMALLY.
NORMALLY.
NORMALLY. IF THESE TESTS COME OUT NORMAL,
THE EXPERTS FEEL THAT WE CAN
WITH SOME SAFETY PROBABLY GET
THE ATHLETES BACK TO PLAY IN
ABOUT THREE TO SIX MONTHS.
IF THEY COME OUT ABNORMAL, THEN
OF COURSE, WE HAVE TO FOLLOW UP
WITH MORE SENSITIVE TESTING
LIKE CARDIAC MRIs.
>> IF THOSE TESTS ARE
NECESSARY, ALL HEALTH CARE GOES
BACK TO HOW MUCH IT COSTS.
PRO FOOTBALL TEAMS CARRY 50
LAYERS, LESS THAN 2,000
PLAYERS.
PLAYERS.
PLAYERS. YOU TALK ABOUT COLLEGE
FOOTBALL, THE MONEY IS A
DIFFERENT STORY ALTOGETHER WITH
THE NUMBERS AS WELL AS THE
AVAILABILITY OF WHAT IT WOULD
COST TO DO ALL THIS KIND OF
TESTING WITH ALL THOSE PLAYERS.
>> Reporter: ABSOLUTELY.
AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR THE
IMPACT ON THEIR CAREER.
IF YOU FIND EVIDENCE OF SCAR IN
SOMEBODY'S HEART, CAN THEY EVER
RETURN TO PLAY?
THOSE TYPES OF QUESTIONS GET
RAISED AS WELL.
>> WE WILL LEARN A LOT MORE
ABOUT MYOCARDITIS AND ITS
RELATIONSHIP TO