Heart

Communication may guide family members’ decisions after sudden cardiac death.

Surviving family members of a person who died from sudden cardiac death rely on information from death investigators and health care professionals to process their relative’s death and understand their own risk of inherited heart conditions.
The type and timing of the communication received from death investigators and health care professionals influences family members’ experiences and decisions about whether to pursue genetic screening.
Future research is needed to guide death investigators and health care professionals to help family members understand their own risk and improve follow-up screening rates for inherited heart conditions.
Sudden cardiac death occurs when the heart stops suddenly and unexpectedly, and it claims the lives of an estimated 4 to 5 million people globally each year. In the U.S. alone, sudden cardiac death was cited as a cause in more than 436,000 deaths in 2020, according to the American Heart Association’s 2023 heart disease and stroke statistics. 
In people younger than age 45, sudden cardiac death is usually due to an underlying heart condition, such as a structural abnormality in the heart or an irregular heart rhythm. These heart conditions may be passed down through genes from parents to their children.
“Sudden cardiac deaths in young people are rarely expected, leaving families with many questions,” said the study’s co-lead author Katherine S. Allan, Ph.D., M.A.Sc., a researcher in the division of cardiology at Unity Health Toronto – St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, Canada.
“Family members of sudden cardiac death victims rely on communication from death investigators and health care professionals to find answers about their relative’s cause of death. This can have a profound impact on families, including their ability to grieve and come to terms with the loss.”

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