What happened to Eriksen? The cardiologist’s hypotheses and why Bove is a different case

Danish footballer Christian Eriksen, 34, collapsed during the friendly match between Denmark and Ukraine, five years after suffering cardiac arrest during the European Championships. “Christian Eriksen is well,” the Danish Football Federation wrote on social media. World Cup at risk? “The key point is that the implantable defibrillator does not cause the episode, but intercepts and treats an arrhythmia. From the words of the Danish national team doctor it seems that the device worked as expected, and this is exactly its life-saving role. We must keep in mind that playing with an ICD (implantable cardioverter defibrillator) does not mean being ‘at zero risk’, but having important protection. Episodes of arrhythmia with shock may occur in those who wear a defibrillator appropriate or, sometimes, inappropriate, more often during physical activity than at rest, despite observational data on athletes showing no deaths during sport when there is adequate, appropriate and timely specialist management”. Thus to Adnkronos Salute Federico Nardi, director of Cardiology at the Santo Spirito hospital in Casale Monferrato (Al) and designated president of Anmco (National Association of hospital cardiologists).

What could have happened to Eriksen during the Denmark-Ukraine friendly? “A loss of consciousness, even for a short period, in an athlete with a history of arrest and carrier of an ICD, however, requires targeted investigations in a hospital setting, starting from the interrogation of the device and the analysis of the recorded trace – replies Nardi – to understand whether it was a true ventricular arrhythmia, an inappropriate shock or a correctable triggering factor. Before a possible return to the field, modern recommendations insist on specialist evaluation, confirmation of electrical stability also under effort and shared decision”.

Edoardo Bove, Italian footballer, more than 400 days after heart surgery – immediately after cardiac arrest during Fiorentina-Inter – returned to play in the United Kingdom at Watford after having a defibrillator implanted. “It is not correct to automatically transfer what happened to Eriksen to another athlete. In fact, the diagnoses and risk profiles can be completely different. The message, if anything, is that those who return to a high level after an arrhythmic event must be followed with structured follow-up protocols and in expert centers”, concludes the cardiologist.

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