It was supposed to be a routine heart screening.
Christina Langone and her husband Chris were watching a Euro Championship soccer match when a Danish player suffered cardiac arrest.
A couple of years later in 2023, LeBron James’ son Bronny collapsed during a basketball workout at the University of Southern California. He too recovered from his cardiac arrest.
Lachlan Langones was a healthy, active Coleytown Middle School 7th grader, and a high-level soccer player. But when his parents saw a notice for free heart screening sponsored by the non-profit In a Heartbeat organization, they figured “why not”?
Lachlan Langone, around the time of his cardiac screening.
Christina and Lachlan got to the Staples High School cafeteria late. She apologized, but a volunteer said, “We’ll be here as long as we need to.”
Lachlan was tested like everyone else, in a private tent. It was quick and painless. The toughest part was taking the electrodes off.
That was that. Until the next day, when Christina got a call from a pediatric cardiologist who works with In a Heartbeat.
Lachlan’s EKG showed an abnormality. Like everyone the group screened, he could be seen within 48 hours at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in Darien.
The abnormality was Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome. WPW is asymptomatic. An extra electrical pathway leads to a rapid heartbeat. But in rare cases, it can lead to sudden death.
Soon, Lachlan had an ablation at Yale New Haven Children’s Center. A wire was inserted into a blood vessel, to burn an extra piece of nerve fiber conducting the electricity. The outpatient procedure has a high success rate, with low risk.
Lachlan went home that day. Soon he was back to soccer, and headed to Norway for a long-awaited hike.
Lachlan Langone gives a thumb’s-up to In a Heartbeat.
The other day, Christina and 2 other volunteers with In a Heartbeat talked about the organization.
Lachlan — now an 8th grader — was not there. He was in Florida, playing in a soccer tournament. The nerve did not regrow, so he is considered cured.
Without screening, he might have been at risk for sudden cardiac arrest. Mike Papale and Caroline de Lasa, who joined Christina, both survived near-death experiences. They too want to spread the word about In a Heartbeat.
The next local screening is Tuesday, May 27, from 3 to 7 p.m. in the Staples High School cafeteria. Pre-registration is requested (click here), but walk-ins are welcome too. It is open to children, teenagers and young adults.
Caroline’s harrowing story took place at the Saugatuck Rowing Club. She collapsed suddenly, while working out.
The stars were aligned. A trainer recognized she was in cardiac arrest. Another trainer performed high-quality CPR. Firefighters at the nearby Saugatuck station raced over, and used an AED (automated external defibrillator) to restart her heart.
“My kids might not have had their mother,” she says. “I can’t emphasize enough the importance of screening.”
Caroline de Lasa, after her sudden cardiac arrest, and with her girls.
Mike agrees. He survived sudden cardiac arrest at 17. Two decades later, his heart condition is treated by medication.
Lachlan’s is hardly the only In a Heartbeat success story. Since 2021, they have screened over 10,000 Connecticut youngsters. At least 52 have needed follow-up care.
In addition to screening, In a Heartbeat has placed over 800 AEDs throughout Fairfield County. They know of at least 5 lives that have been saved directly through the easy-to-use devices.
About 23,000 children die in the US each year from sudden cardiac arrest. Ninety percent have conditions detectable by screening.
Statistically, Caroline says, 15 to 17 boys and girls in Westport have heart issues that can be caught through screening.
Christina, Caroline and Mike urge Westport parents to bring their children to the May 27 screening at Staples. They hope sports coaches will pass the word to their teams, too.
In a Heartbeat is a full-service program. While children are being screened, adults can practice CPR.
It costs $25 to screen each child. However, the service is free. In a Heartbeak relies on donations and grants to do its life-saving work. (Click here to contribute.)
Their goal is ambitious. Within 2 years, In a Heartbeat hopes to screen all 490,000 Connecticut K-12 youngsters. They would find 1,500 to 2,000 with detectable cardiac issues. The cost would be $12.25 million.
“For a family that’s never been affected by heart disease, it may be hard to understand,” Mike says. “Most kids are young, healthy people.
“And some people are afraid of knowing their kids may be at risk for sudden cardiac arrest. But most cases are treatable. If doctors know enough, they can keep them safe.”
Mike papale, in the hospital nearly 20 years ago, and today.
If he had been screened, Mike could have been treated with an implanted defibrillator.
Nearly 2 decades after his own near-death experience — which ended well, because an off-duty EMT nearby provided high-quality CPR — Mike runs, works out, bikes, hikes and coaches basketball.
And — along with Mike — the EMT who saved his life goes to nearly every In a Heartbeat screening he can.
The next local screening is Tuesday, May 27, from 3 to 7 p.m. in the Staples High School cafeteria. Pre-registration is requested (click here), but walk-ins are welcome too.
