(Reuters Health) – Screening athletes for hidden heart problems may not help prevent sudden deaths, a new study from Israel finds.
The findings, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, cast doubts on the usefulness of widespread, mandatory screening of young athletes with electrocardiography, or ECG.
The test measures the electrical activity of the heart and can detect disturbances that might spell trouble.
Mandatory screening has been in place in Italy and Israel for years, while in the U.S. there has been some debate over whether to launch similar policies.
