A comprehensive review of data, recently published in The Lancet and led by Emory sports cardiologist Jonathan Kim, MD, reveals that Black athletes face a significantly higher risk—nearly five times greater—of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and sudden cardiac death (SCD) compared to their White counterparts. Despite an overall decline in SCD rates among athletes, SCA and SCD remain the leading causes of mortality, particularly in high-intensity sports.
The racial disparities in SCA and SCD rates underscore the urgent need for deeper exploration of social determinants of health in younger athletes, an area that has been largely under-researched, according to Dr. Kim.
Drawing on three decades of national and international data on SCA and SCD in athletes, Kim and a team of researchers from Lausanne University Hospital, Morristown Medical, Massachusetts General Hospital, and other leading institutions, also reviewed persistent inequities in athlete electrocardiography (ECG) screenings. These screenings, now a standard practice for competitive athletes, often result in more false positives for Black athletes.
