The news of the demise of Nigerian female
musician, 30-year-old Susan Harvey (Goldie), is no longer new. What is
new, however, is the suddenness, which has left many people wondering
what might have led to her death.
What more, being a public figure, Goldie
lived virtually all her life before the camera. She appeared healthy
enough and her fans had no inkling that she ever had any health issue.
Many reasons — albeit unofficial — has
been adduced for her death. For one, an artiste friend of hers, Denrele
Edun, who reportedly rushed her to the hospital when she collapsed
suddenly upon arrival from the United States where she had attended the
Grammy Awards, said she died of pneumonia.
The doctors claimed that she died before
arrival at the Reddington Hospital, Victoria Island, Lagos and therefore
could not volunteer the cause of death. While there has also been a
reference to blood clot, an unidentified source said she died of drug
overdose, which her British widower, Andrew, has denied.
Whatever was the cause of Goldie’s death, one thing is certain: she died suddenly.
According to Consultant Cardiologist in
private practice in Lagos, Dr. Victor Adeleke, Sudden Adult Death
Syndrome or Sudden Death Syndrome is an umbrella term used for the many
different causes of cardiac arrest in young people from their teens to
early 30s.
He explains that inheritance may be a
factor, depending on the underlying syndrome, while some conditions are
due to genetic disorders and some are acquired as a result of exposure
to certain medications.
Adeleke says usually, many of those who
die would have been previously healthy and are therefore not likely to
have had electrocardiogram (ECG) to check their heart. “As a result, it
is often difficult to identify the cause of death,” he adds.
Another physician, Andrew Grace, of
Papworth Hospital, in Cambridge, United Kingdom, explains that cardiac
arrhythmias are a common cause of SADS or SDS. He says, “One in
particular, Long QT Syndrome, may be genetic in origin.
He explains, “LQTS is a rare inborn heart
condition in which delayed repolarisation of the heart following a
heartbeat increases the risk of episodes of irregular heartbeats. These
episodes may lead to palpitations, fainting and sudden death due to
ventricular fibrillation. Episodes may be provoked by various stimuli,
depending on the subtype of the condition.”
Grace laments that the disturbing thing
about SADS is that many victims are happy, active young people who have
no symptoms whatsoever before they die. He says SADS can happen anywhere
at any time and that it can affect people from all age groups, both
adults and children.
Again, a non-governmental organisation,
Cardiac Risk in the Young, says the most common causes of unexpected
sudden cardiac death in the young (aged 35 and under) include thickening
or abnormal structure of the heart muscle and irregularities of the
electrical impulses that upset the natural rhythm of the heart.
CRY says the deaths are usually
non-traumatic, non-violent, unexpected occurrences resulting from
cardiac arrest within as little as six hours of previously witnessed
normal health
Worse still, physicians say, sometimes,
there are no warning signs but in other cases, people can experience
dizziness or fainting spells.
“There may also be sudden loss of consciousness; and death often occurs during physical exercise or emotional upset,” they say.
Experts say SADS is now becoming widely
recognised as a condition, and that there’s the need for more research
into why and how it happens.
They also say there is a simple way to
diagnose most of the abnormalities that can lead to sudden death. “This
is by having an ECG test,” they advise.
Adeleke says an ECG is used to measure
the rate and regularity of heartbeats, for diagnosis of heart
abnormalities, as well as the size and position of the chambers. “It
reveals the presence of any damage to the heart, and the effects of
drugs or devices used to regulate the heart.”
He says the test is quick, painless and
affordable; and that, for extra clarity, an echocardiogram (ultrasound
scan of the heart) can be taken if the doctor deems it necessary.
Again, he says, it is advisable for
family members to undergo ECG screening if there have been any young
person’s sudden death in the family, or if a young family member is
suffering from symptoms of chest pain that may be exercise-related,
breathlessness, palpitations, dizziness or fainting.
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