A NEW CENTRE for identifying cardiac risk in young people will see at least 1,600 patients every year, with the figure rising to 3,000 when all its plans are realised.
The Centre for Cardiovascular Risk in Younger Persons was officially opened in Tallaght hospital yesterday, although it has already seen more than 500 people in evening and weekend clinics. More than 5,000 people suffer sudden cardiac death every year, and about 15 per cent of them are under 35.
The centre provides free screening for young people at risk of sudden cardiac death but also focuses on all members of families who have experienced such a death. People can be referred by GPs, consultants or through the Cardiac Risk in the Young charity (CRY).
CRY has raised funds for the running of the centre and also provides counselling and support at the hospital. The centre is also funded by Tallaght, St James's and St Vincent's hospitals and individual benefactors.
The project's director, consultant cardiologist Dr David Mulcahy, said it had taken 10 years to get the centre opened and it would not have happened without CRY. "I think we all need this kind of caring and community interaction to go ahead in the future," he said.
The charity was set up in 2002 by parents who had experienced the sudden death of a child and were concerned at the lack of support available.
Awareness of sudden cardiac death has increased in recent years following the sudden deaths of high-profile athletes such as Tyrone footballer Cormac McAnallen. The Cormac Trust has been set up by his family to raise awareness of the risk of sudden cardiac death.
CRY co-founder Michael Greene lost his 15-year-old son Peter in 1996. "He just woke at 3.30 in the morning," Michael recalled yesterday. "I was away on business. My wife heard him groaning. She went in and he said 'I have a pain in my chest and I can't see you'."
He died shortly afterwards in Beaumont hospital. "It's brutal and the effect on a family is devastating," he said.
Olivia Hanevy's husband, Padraig (41), also died without warning. She said the support from CRY and the screening of her children was very important to her. "I felt it was a great relief for me to actually see the kids being checked and know that their hearts are perfect."
Mr Greene said it was very important that the centre was free to everyone and "no family or individual at risk should have to depend on their pocket to have a speedy examination".
Dr Deirdre Ward, co-director of the centre, said it could normally take up to two years to get a cardio ECHO test in some hospitals. "Nobody should have to wait to be seen," she said. "And we should be able to do significant research to reduce the impact of sudden cardiac death on the Irish population."
The hospital's president, Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin John Neill, said there was real sorrow and suffering behind the setting up of the unit. "But the fact is that it is a gift of hope, of life, for so many people. So we look forward to a new day for so many people because of today."
Former taoiseach Dr Garret FitzGerald unveiled a plaque for the centre. He said the number of young people dying from cardiac disease was small "but no young person should die unnecessarily from a heart problem".
He said that while the death rate had fallen by almost 30 per cent between 1990 and 2007, the reduction was not reflected in the numbers of young people dying from cardiac failure.
