After a routine sports physical at Dawson Highschool in Pearland, TX,

Chase was ready for the next football season. Before leaving the

school that day, Chase's mom signed him up to get an EKG that was

being offered by the community hospital in the area. A few months

later, his EKG reading came back abnormal with a note to follow up

with his pediatrician as soon as possible. Being that Chase was now

13 years old and have been playing sports since he was 3 years old,

his family thought this was some kind of mistake. Surely there was

nothing going on with his heart and if so, why hasn't it come out in his

annual routine check ups in the past?
 

Two months and many more tests after receiving his EKG results,

Chase was diagnosed with a right anomalous coronary artery which

is also referred to as an Anomalous Aortic Origin of a Coronary Artery

(AAOCA). This is a congenital defect of the coronary artery, which

means it was present at birth.
 

AAOCA affects approximately 0.3% of the population, and appears

about three times more often in boys than girls. It can be associated

with decreased blood flow to the heart. If AAOCA is left untreated, it

can lead to Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) and Sudden Cardiac Death

(SCD) following exercise and/or exertion.
 

This news was not only a hard pill for Chase's parents to swallow, but

it was extremely difficult for Chase as he was the starting Quarterback

on the team and it was unknown as to if he would ever play sports

again. Chase was placed on physical restriction until December 1,

2014 which is the day he underwent open heart surgery. Thankfully

the surgery went well and Chase was able to resume playing football

and basketball for the next three years of his high school career.  

 

A routine EKG saved his life. Chase's goal is to share his story hoping one day it could prevent someone else from suffering from Sudden Cardiac Death.