WAUKESHA — More than 300 Wisconsin students were screened for underlying heart problems Tuesday in Waukesha.
“They put these little sensors on me, monitoring my heart rate. It didn’t hurt, just tickled like a piece of tape on skin,” 14-year-old James Lehrmann said.
The fifth annual event was hosted by the Kai11 Save-A-Heart Mission, a foundation created in honor of Kai Lermer.
Lermer died suddenly in 2019 from an undiagnosed heart condition. He was 16 years old and a triathlete at Waukesha North High School.
“He had lots of friends. He played three sports. He was a kindhearted soul and would be so proud to see this happen right now,” Patty Lermer, Kai’s mom, said.
2024 was the fifth year Kai's family organized an event where hundreds of high school students could get an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), a short test that can check for different heart conditions, at a low cost.
Lermer said an EKG likely would have saved Kai’s life.
Over the past five years, their organization has screened close to 1800 young people.
Among those, they found underlying heart conditions in three students, and 17 needed further evaluation by a doctor.
Watch: Waukesha teen's family raises awareness about sudden cardiac arrest
“I feel so happy to bring awareness and prevent tragedy from happening to any other family. We were blindsided, and it’s the worst tragedy we’ve ever been through,” Lermer said.
In addition, the Waukesha Fire Department provided CPR and AED training to parents and students.
“They asked us to come out to them because obviously EKGs and heart symptoms partner with what we do on a daily basis,” Tom Koerner, a fire inspector with the City of Waukesha, explained.
According to the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association, sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death in young athletes while training or participating in a sports competition.
Kai’s mother has since had an AED installed in the park where he first collapsed.
Their family has also helped get a law passed in Wisconsin that requires doctors to share information on sudden cardiac arrests for high school students and student-athletes and includes the option to get their child an EKG.
Lermer said the school with the most students registered to get screened this year, will get a free AED.
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