On the field and the court, safety is paramount to competition for all student athletes.
That’s why AugustHeart will be coming to Seguin High School on Sept. 29 to offer free cardiac screenings for athletes.
The program, based in San Antonio, offers the free, potentially life-saving screenings at schools, medical facilities and other venues in the region to detect heart abnormalities in students ages 14-18 to help reduce sudden cardiac deaths.
On Sept. 29, the screenings, which take less than 20 minutes per athlete, will be offered to Seguin High School students at 4 p.m. in the Gold Center. All students must pre-register online at www.AugustHeart.org/screenings. The registration password is SISD2016.
Seguin ISD district 3 Trustee Craig Thomas spearheaded the effort to bring AugustHeart to Seguin.
“The Koontz family, founders of AugustHeart, are dear friends and after learning more about the program, I felt it important that we create an opportunity for our student athletes to be screened. The health and safety of our students on an off the field is our biggest priority. We do a great job of that at Seguin ISD and the cardiac screening on Sept. 29 will compound our efforts to give our students the best quality of life opportunities,” he said.
Doré and Bart Koontz founded the program in 2011. Their son, August Koontz, suffered from an undiagnosed heart condition that caused his sudden death in 2008. A high school athlete, August was only 18.
The cardiac screenings look for the most common indicators that can increase the risk of sudden death. The process involves an electrocardiogram and a limited echocardiogram, if necessary. This will provide an ultrasound photograph of the heart.
While abnormalities found during a screening are rare, should one be found, AugustHeart will suggest that parents obtain further medical evaluation for their child. Parents and guardians are not required to attend the screening but are invited to attend to receive the screening results.
For more information, contact the Seguin ISD Athletic Department at (830) 401-8022.