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Oct 3, 2009 10:45 pm US/Eastern
Heart Health Fair Held At Pitt Fan Fest
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ―
Heart disease is the leading cause of death among men and women in the United States.
So University of Pittsburgh basketball coach Jamie Dixon is doing something about it.
His sister, women's basketball coach Maggie Dixon, suffered a sudden cardiac death more than three years ago.
At Pitt today they held the Maggie Dixon Heart Health Fair.
The fair is now part of the annual Basketball Fan Fest at the Petersen Events Center. Besides playing games and interacting with members of Pitts' basketball teams, fans were screened for heart disease.
"We really want to get across awareness," said Coach Dixon. "Awareness of heart disease, sudden cardiac arrest, things you can do - whether it be exercise, diet, first aid, CPR training, AED training."
Maggie Sixon was just 28-years-old when she died from a heart arrhythmia. Like her brother, she was a successful college basketball coach, but her life tragically ended too soon.
Now the Maggie Dixon Foundation promotes awareness of sudden cardiac death and the need for prevention and early diagnosis.
"This is a disease that kills more people than all cancers combined in this country," said Dr. Dan Edmundowicz, of the UPMC Cardiovascular Institute. "Just increasing the awareness of all types of heart disease was really our goal."
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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