Former NFL players praise heart-screening program

Nov 27, 2008 (The Kansas City Star - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- SREA | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- It looked like a typical doctor's office waiting room. Receptionists worked behind the desk, nurses summoned patients, and lengthy forms had to be filled out.

But these were no ordinary patients waiting for appointments. The group included a Pro Football Hall of Famer, Super Bowl champions, Pro Bowlers and even a Heisman Trophy winner.

Taking advantage of a new program launched by the NFL Player Care Foundation, 33 former players underwent a free, comprehensive heart screening on Nov. 13-14 at Carondelet Heart Institute at St. Joseph Medical Center.

The waiting room was a Who's Who of Chiefs history, including Bobby Bell, Ed Budde, Jim Lynch, Jim Kearney, Curtis McClinton and Deron Cherry; former NFL players who live in the area, including Paul Coffman, Conrad Dobler, Jamie Mueller and Henry Childs; and former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Rodgers, who drove in from Omaha.

"This has been needed for a long time," former Chiefs running back Ted McKnight said after the 90-minute screening. "This can help catch things in guys who have had issues who probably would have let it skate by. It's important to have an idea of where we are physically. We know we are beat up ... but to know internally where we are ... you're curious to know."

The cardiovascular screening program is a byproduct from the outcry in recent years by former players who thought the NFL and NFL Players Association have not adequately addressed the needs and benefits of those who played the game, especially before big contracts kicked in.

"Those things didn't come about until we had Gridiron Greats and other people organized and said, 'Wait a minute, we have to take care of some of these things,' " said Dobler, an outspoken critic of how the needs of retired players have been neglected over the years. "Any type of business has an image to protect, and the NFL certainly wants to do its part in protecting its image."

Other new programs funded by the NFL Player Care Foundation -- which is a partnership between the NFL, NFL Alumni, NFLPA and Pro Football Hall of Fame -- include the NFL Player Joint Replacement Program; Assisted Living Benefits; "Plan88" Dementia Benefits; and Prostate Cancer Screenings.

"Commissioner (Roger) Goodell has made a commitment to understanding the concerns of retired players and working toward better solutions," said Brian McCarthy, NFL vice president of corporate communications. "These heart screenings are among a number of programs we initiated with the NFL Players Association to address the needs of retired players."

Jeffrey Boone, a cardiologist from Denver, brought a team of medical technicians to Kansas City and worked with medical personnel at Carondelet in putting the former players through a battery of tests. The players moved from room to room and underwent imaging of the heart and arteries, advanced blood profiling, cholesterol testing, blood-pressure tests, body-fat measuring and a 64-slice CAT scan that can predict the patient's risk for heart attack and stroke.

The tests would cost about $3,000 if done in a hospital and probably would be out-of-pocket since most insurance companies would not cover them

"That's the first complete physical I've had like that," said former Chiefs offensive lineman Rich Baldinger. "It's even more complete than when we played.

"As players, we put a lot of stress on our bodies. Guys are bigger and stronger and heavier than the average person, so you go through all that. Once a lot of guys' careers end, they don't continue the same physical training. So how much damage did you do in the meantime? You're hoping it isn't a lot."

Boone and Dr. Archie Roberts are screening about 500 players this year and eventually hope to test 10,000 former players. They've already been to several NFL cities and college towns such as Columbus, Ohio, and Austin, Texas, where many former players live.

"In general, the biggest problem in America today is heart disease," Boone said. "From a football perspective, we're trying to look at their health in the first quarter of a game, so to speak. Hospitals like St. Joseph and Carondelet Heart Center are very good with the fourth-quarter, Hail Mary, but the screening is taking guys who are for the most part free of symptoms but can take advantage of early-detection strategies for heart disease and stroke.

"One of the reasons I got involved is because of the inspiration that allows other men to think, 'Maybe I should get tested. If it's good enough for John Elway or Len Dawson, maybe it's good enough for me.' Most of us don't like to go to the doctor unless we're really sick."

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For years, there has been a belief that pro football players die at younger ages than the general population when, in fact, a 1994 study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health revealed that, overall, football players die at a rate 46 percent less than the general population.

But, linemen had about a 50-percent greater risk of death from heart disease, so while the average life expectancy for U.S. men is 77.6 years, studies suggest the average life expectancy for NFL linemen is in their 50s.

"While football is not dangerous for the heart, it attracts men who are at high risk, in some respects," Boone said. "The big, huge male will often have a shorter life span.

"If you took guys who never played football who are working in a factory that are the same size, the same sex, same race, same age, they have the same heart-attack rate. It gets reported that the NFL is dangerous, when in fact, factory workers who are 6-4, 320 don't live as long as their counterparts.

"But in general, all of us men have a very high-heart attack rate, and the African-American community has a higher risk."

The NFL is collecting the data from the screenings and hopes to categorize the heart risks not only by a player's size, but by his position, differentiating the risk to a lineman as compared with a linebacker, running back, receiver or quarterback.

"Our testing is designed to find early evidence of atherosclerotic plaque in the arteries," Boone said.

"That's the plaque that causes heart attacks and strokes. Many times, a heart attack occurs in vessels that are not that far blocked, where the plaque is vulnerable. A lot of our tests are to try to find not necessarily the blockages, but the early plaque.

"In this testing of 30 guys, we'll probably find three or four who will be very surprised by the data. About 10 percent of the people we test, we'll find serious issues that will probably save their life in one way or another."

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In about two weeks after the tests, Boone will notify the players of the results. Then it's up to that 10 percent to seek more help, whether it's a follow-up exam, taking a stress test, getting a prescription or needing something as simple as a daily aspirin or fish oil tablet.

The players don't always take the advice.

Aaron Smith, who played linebacker for the Denver Broncos in 1984, went through the screening program in October, Boone said. Smith was told he needed to go on some medications, but he apparently rejected the recommendation. He died a few weeks later at age 46.

"All this testing won't get you anywhere unless you do something with the results," Boone said. "Even though you might feel great, and that's the nature of heart disease, you need to act on these reports."

Budde, who helped organize the screenings through the Kansas City chapter of the NFL Alumni, has had a pacemaker for the last seven years.

"You play for those many years, and you stay in top shape, and then you slack off when you retire," Budde said. "You gain a little weight, you get a little lazier. Everyone I know stays in pretty good shape, but why not get checked out? Maybe you need a pacemaker, maybe you need a defibrillator or stent."

Both Cherry and Rodgers have been advocates of preventative health care for others, and this was one opportunity to take care of themselves.

Cherry sponsors Score One for Health, an annual medical and dental screening for elementary-school children who otherwise would not have access to such care.

"I do it for the kids, and it's about time I get to do it for myself," said Cherry, who took part in the prostate screening exam in October. "For the young kids, it's good because the idea is we want them to be healthy as they start off their career in education. For us, it's more preventative so we can live longer lives and more productive lives.

"A lot of guys, you never know the situation. Insurance costs are so hard ... if guys are self-employed and don't have insurance ... so to be able to have these tests done, to make sure your arteries are not clogged, it's a wonderful thing."

Rodgers, who played in the Canadian Football League and for the San Diego Chargers, is active with the cancer foundation in Omaha.

"I'm promoting the fact that people should get screened for cancer, especially African-Americans, because we have a 50-percent higher mortality rate," Rodgers said, "so when I heard about the heart screening, I decided to do it.

"A lot of people believe what you don't know won't hurt you. But I believe what you don't know will kill you."

To reach Randy Covitz, NFL reporter for The Star, call 816-234-4796 or send e-mail to rcovitz@kcstar.com

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