Title of Research Project: RENEWAL OF UNITED STATES COMMOTIO CORDIS REGISTRY

Institution: MINNEAPOLIS HEART INSTITUTE FOUNDATION

Principal Investigator: Barry J. Maron, MD

Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation

920 E. 28^th Street, Suite 40

Minneapolis, MN 55407

Tel: 612/863-3996

E-mail: gencvres@skypoint.com

1999 Annual report

In the past academic year the commotio cordis registry has flourished. The registry now has 105 well-documented cases assembled which represent a broad clinical profile of this syndrome - - - obviously unduplicated anywhere else. The support of NOCSAE has been instrumental in keeping this effort together. We have made the decision to write a definitive paper at this time with the number of cases > 100. Our abstract submitted for presentation at the American Heart Association meeting is enclosed (1) and these data will represent the basis for that manuscript (which we project will ultimately include 110-120 cases). This series has the power of substantial size (for an uncommon event) and therefore can show the broad spectrum of commotio cordis which has never been defined. Our experience also includes 5 victims for whom the perpetrators were wrongly convicted of the criminal offenses of murder and manslaughter for commotio cordis; these cases form the basis of another manuscript, “Legal Implications of Commotio Cordis” which is in preparation (2).

In addition, the clinical data taken from the registry has been periodically interfaced with experiments performed by Dr. Mark Link with the swine model of commotio cordis. For example, the recently published animal experiment defining the sites of impact necessary to produce ventricular fibrillation in commotio cordis (3) relied directly on observations from the registry.

With regard to expenditures, we have spent our grant money closely in concert with the allocations listed in the submitted budget. One exception is the line-item for travel to CPSC for consultation, which has not yet taken place.

References:

1. Maron BJ, Gohman BA, Estes NAM III, Link MS. The clinical spectrum of commotio cordis: The first 100 cases from the U.S. Registry (abstract). Submitted.

2. Maron BJ, Mitten MJ, Burnett CG. Legal implications of commotio cordis. In preparation.

3. Link MS, Maron BJ, VanderBrink BA, Takeuchi MD, Pandian NG, Wang PJ, Estes NAM. Impact directly over the cardiac silhouette is necessary to produce ventricular fibrillation in an experimental model of commotio cordis. J Am Coll Cardiol 2000;34(Suppl A):161A.

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