UF Health Sports physicians worked with the Florida High School Athletic Association and the Florida Alliance for Sports Medicine to discuss how to keep teenage athletes safe. A WCJB TV-20 news story highlights how a Southwest Florida parent is using her son's death as an example of why policy needs to change statewide.
"Zachary was at a summer practice June 29th of 2017 and they were finishing up running drills, and went to a huddle, and he collapsed at the back of the huddle," said Laurie Giordano. Her 16 year old son died 10 days later after a heat stroke, and she said no one knew what to do. "His teammates were trying to give him water. He was not swallowing. He was having a seizure."
While this particular event took place in Lee County, stories like this are making an impact for sports medicine professionals statewide.
"Fortunately heat strokes are rare, and if they're treated appropriately and they're treated early they're 100% preventable," said UF Health Sports Medicine Physician Bryan Prine.
Implementing mandatory actions such as WetBulb globe temperature readings, cold water immersion tubs, and athletic trainers at every sporting event could help prevent these kind of incidents from happening.
For more on the suggested changes and actions on atheltics policies, you can check out the full article on the WCJB TV-20 website: