TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2011//
TI  - Global Epidemiology and Demographics of Commotio Cordis
JO  - Heart rhythm
A1  - Maron, Barry J.
A1  - Ahluwalia, Aneesha
A1  - Haas, Tammy S.
A1  - Semsarian, Christopher
A1  - Link, Mark S.
A1  - Mark Estes, N. A.
SP  - 1969
EP  - 1971
VL  - 8
IS  - 12
N2  - BACKGROUND: The commotio cordis literature has largely focused on events occurring in the U.S. However, with enhanced public awareness, commotio cordis has been increasingly recognized internationally as a cause of cardiac arrest and sudden death due to blunt non-penetrating chest blows. OBJECTIVE: To characterize the demographics of commotio cordis globally in comparison to the U.S. experience. METHODS: Interrogation of the Commotio Cordis Registry (Minneapolis, MN). RESULTS: We report 60 cases of commotio cordis occurring outside the U.S. from 21 countries (most commonly the United Kingdom and Canada), on 5 continents. In the 2 groups, events were largely similar demographically, including frequency of survival (26% vs. 25%; p = 0.84), and the striking male predominance evident in both groups (i.e., 95%), although non-U.S. victims were somewhat older (19 ± 13 vs. 15 ± 9; p = 0.002). Not unexpectedly, the groups differed with baseball/softball and football predominant in the U.S. (55% of events) and soccer, cricket, and hockey most common internationally (47% of events). Notably, the frequency with which soccer balls caused commotio cordis was much more common than expected, particularly in non-U.S. athletes (20% vs. 3% in U.S.; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Commotio cordis demonstrates a global occurrence, very similar demographically in the U.S. and internationally. However, the frequency with which chest blows from soccer balls caused commotio cordis events (particularly during sports played internationally) appears to contradict the prevailing notion that air-filled projectiles convey less risk for ventricular fibrillation than do those with solid cores (e.g., baseball or lacrosse balls).<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1547-5271
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.hrthm.2011.07.014
ID  - ref1
ER  -