A structural cardiac abnormality is found at autopsy in most cases of sudden death. 1–10
Fatal events in adults usually occur as an arrhythmic complication of atherosclerotic
coronary artery disease, in the setting of either acute coronary syndromes or previous
myocardial infarction. 1–6 Other cardiovascular disorders implicated in sudden death,
predominantly in younger people and athletes, include cardiomyopathy, valve heart
disease, congenital anomaly of coronary arteries, conduction system disease, and …

In most cases of malignant ventricular arrhythmias or sudden death, a structural cardiac
abnormality is evidenced by clinical investigations or autopsy. In senior athletes sudden
deaths during physical activity usually occur as arrhythmic complications of an acute
coronary syndrome, whereas other cardiovascular disorders, such as cardiomyopathies,
congenital heart diseases, or myocarditis, account for the majority of fatal events among
younger sportsmen. 1 Sometimes sudden death occurs with an apparently normal heart on …