He was, it seemed, a fit and healthy man; a professional athlete at the peak of his powers. But just after Christmas last year, Motherwell captain Phil O'Donnell collapsed and died while playing the game he loved.
The 35-year-old former Celtic and Scotland midfielder was a victim of Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD), an umbrella term for the many different causes of a condition which strikes, literally, at the heart of young people. O'Donnell's death, which stunned the sporting community, served to highlight this silent killer which, suddenly and with shocking speed, can strike ostensibly healthy individuals.
The player's fatal collapse has reportedly been linked to what some experts believe is the most common cause of SCD – hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a genetic disorder where the heart muscle becomes thickened, making it harder for it to work.
Just two months later, sports-mad Perthshire teenager, Callum Ferrier, 16, died from the same condition, after going to bed complaining of a headache.
Now, in a bid to prevent such tragedies, a pilot screening programme to test young amateur athletes for conditions that can lead to SCD, was launched yesterday. Under the scheme, up to 4000 people a yare will undergo cardiovascular screening.
The £200,000 two-year programme will make Scotland only the third country in the world, after Italy and the US, to employ such a scheme.
It comes as welcome news to young sportsmen such as 16-year-old Glen McIntosh who fits the profile of those the initiative aims to target.
The teenager was among the first to be tested at Hampden Park in Glasgow yesterday, where the Scottish Government-backed scheme will be based.
The Bellahouston Academy pupil, a swimmer hoping to compete in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, said: "My test came back clear, which of course I'm very relieved about. Without something like this, we would lose so many more people to the condition that killed Phil O'Donnell and others."
Athletes can be at higher risk of SCDE because pre-existing cardiovascular conditions can be exacerbated when challenged by high-intensity activity.
Other high-profile deaths from SCD include 15-year-old Daniel Yorath, son of the former Wales football manager Terry Yorath, who, 16 years ago, died in his father's arms from the same condition that is believed to have afflicted O'Donnell.
Cameroon midfielder Marc-Vivien Foe, 28, died in 203 after collapsing during an international match in France from hypertrophic cadiomyopathy, and last year Spanish international defender Antonio Puerta, 22, died after suffering a heart attack while playing for his club side Sevilla.
Most instances of SCD in those under 35 are related to inherited cardiomyopathies and arrhythmias, for which there are specialist services already existing within the NHS.
However, anyone found through the new screening programme to be at greater risk will be referred for further investigation and/or treatment.
Referring to statistics which show SCD claims some 70 lives a year in Scotland, Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon, who launched the initiative at Scotland's national stadium, said: "The loss of each of these lives is a tragedy."
Under the scheme, athletes will first fill in a questionnaire detailing any known family heart conditions, before having an ECG test to pick up any abnormality and ultrasound procedure to detect any problem with the structure of the heart.
Ms Sturgeon said: "Many professional athletes can be screened by their sporting bodies – indeed, professional footballers in the SPL already have checks every year. But until now there has been no opportunity for young Scots who participate in organised amateur sports to have access to appropriate testing."
The programme will be open to youngsters involved in organised amateur sport, whose GP can refer them for testing. It will also be available to the Scottish Football Association, which is a partner in the scheme along with the Scottish Government and Glasgow University.
The launch of the project was welcomed by the family of Lynne Lewis, who was a tireless campaigner for the testing procedure to be extended.
The mother-of-two was only 35 when she died three years ago of restrictive cardiomyopathy. Her family is convinced she would have died sooner, had she not been tested for the condition and, thus, modified her lifestyle appropriately over the years. She was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy when she was a teenager, but learned in 1996 that she had, in fact, restrictive cardiomyopathy – which can also lead to SCD – and was suffering from severe heart failure.
The diagnosis undoubtedly prolonged her life because many who have one of the conditions that fall under SCD have no idea they have it.
Indeed, not only did Ms Lewis live long enough to marry and become a mother, she launched a vigorous political campaign that aimed to see every young person given an ECG to screen for heart problems.
Her mother, Morag Grant, 59, from Broxburn, West Lothian, has continued the campaign fo0llowing her daughter's death.
Speaking at the launch, she said: "Testing gave us more years with Lynne. After she was diagnosed, she modified her lifestyle and was able to manage the condition. Unfortunately, she needed a heart transplant and died before she could get one.
"Lynne was a wonderful person, and she'll be remembered by everyone who met her. She lived life to the full, but she lived it under the shadow of death."
Also welcoming the initiative were charities working to raise awareness of SCD.
Dr Steven Cox, deputy chief executive of CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young), said: "The reality is that young people are dying of cardiac conditions. In the UK this is at least eight fit and healthy young people – aged 35 and under – each week. In the majority of these deaths there were no symptoms or family history prior to death.
"The impact these deaths have on the family, school, friends and local community is horrendous."
He added: "The only way to identify someone with no symptoms or family history is through cardiac screening in sport since 1993 and the community since 1997.
"We welcome this fantastic screening initiative and the important research that will be conducted into these conditions. It will raise awareness of these conditions and help to save young lives. Scotland is making a very strong statement that we hope others will follow."
Also applauding the protect was Wilma Gunn, 63, from Selkirk in the Borders, whose son Cameron died in 1991, the day before his 20th birthday.
She later set up Scottish HART (Scottish Heart at Risk Testing) – a charity to raise funds for screening for all young athletes.
"It's a big step forward to get a pilot scheme," she said. "Let's hope it moves the issue forward. We need to be working towards a cure and to getting lives saved."
Professor Stewart Hills, director of the sports medicine centre at Hampden, said: "Any young person's death is a tragedy, but it can be even more difficult to accept when that person seems fit and is even taking part in healthy pursuits. In addition to offering voluntary cardiovascular screening to our young athletes, this project will build on the good practice that already exists by building a u8nique, tailored service for Scotland."
THE FACTS
Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD) is a term used for the many different causes of cardiac arrest in young people. The victim may or may not have diagnosed heart disease. the time and mode of death are unexpected. It occurs within minutes after symptoms.
SCD claims some 70 lives a year in Scotland.
Sports activity in adolescents and young adults is associated with an increased risk of SCD. The condition is predominantly caused by pre-existing congenital cardiac abnormalities rather than the sporting activity.
Conditions which if undetected, can lead to SCD included: Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM), Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (ARVC), Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM), Restrictive Cardiomyopathy (RCM), Myocarditis , Coronary Artery Disease (CAD), ion Channelopathies, (Long QT, Brugada, Lev-Lenegre's…), Wolff (Wolfe/Parkinson White Syndrome (WPW), Coronary Artery Anomalies (CAAs), Marfa Syndrome.
Other cardiac conditions include Endocrinal Fibroelastosis (EFE), Tachycardia, Antibiotic Prophylasix, Churg-Strausss Syndrome, Right Bundle Branch Block (RBBB).
