Page 8 - Healthbeat Sept 2016

Parallel perseverance
Twin sisters overcome diagnosis, advocate to help others
STORY BY SPENCER GRIFFIN PHOTOS BY MATT JOHNSON
Waiting in a slow-moving line each year to get a physical to partic- ipate in high school athletics is experienced by many as a bor- ing, monotonous act. But for
twin sisters Morgan and Bailey McAlexander, the process possibly saved their lives.
In order to compete in their four sports — tennis, volleyball, soccer and swimming — the twins needed to pass their annual physical as freshmen in high school. The girls attended the free St. Bernards Medical Group Health Expo physicals in Jonesboro with other athletes. Unlike many athletic physicals around the nation, the St. Bernards’ physical requires athletes to get an EKG.
During the EKG testing, it was discovered that both girls had an electrical rhythm problem with their hearts. Dr. Devi Nair, the electrophysiologist who detected the girls’ condition, said the girls were immediately scheduled for testing.
“They were scheduled for stress tests the next morning, at which time they were diagnosed with Wolff Parkinson White syndrome,” he said. “The twins were immediately admitted to the hospital and
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