Heart Screening For Football Players Made Mandatory

January 4, 2008

Because of Phil O’Donnell’s tragic death, all Scottish football players will undergo a mandatory heart screening as early as the coming season. Also, players who will take part in the UEFA EURO 2008 this summer will be obligated to undergo cardiac examinations prior to the tournament in the wake of earlier tragic events. The UEFA Executive Committee settled to this proposal during the second day of their assembly in Lucerne, Switzerland.

A heart examination is a medical test done to assess arterial blood flow to the heart muscle at some point in any physical exercise, compared to a person’s blood flow when at rest. The outcome can also mirror the overall physical fitness of a person. Heart test irregularities are signals of clear imbalances of comparative blood flow to different parts of the muscle tissue of the heart.

According to Professor Stewart Hillis, SFA’s medical consultant, the mandatory screening was something the association had promoted for quite some time. Everyone is aware that O’Donnell is not the first football player to die during a game due to a heart problem in the previous years. Marc-Vivien Foe fell and died at an international game in the year 2003. The 22-year old Spanish defender Antonio Puerta also died this season after a collapse during a match for Sevilla.

Everyone should be concerned with all the precautions during every match, ensuring all the players’ safety and well-being. Although it has been a habit that doctors sit on the bench during games, it was never put into paper and was never considered a regulatory prerequisite. This year, the Football Association will make sure that it is listed for the well-being of all the footballers who will play in the coming matches.

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