Can I Be A Police Officer If I Have WPW?

Question

I just found out that I have WPW (Wolf-Parkinson's-White) I have heard that people who have that are not permitted to play high school or professional sports (which doesn't bother me because I was planning on playing Pro Football) but I also heard that you can't join the ARMY with it and that kind of upset me because I almost wanted to. Does that mean I can't join the police force either??

Answer 1

Aaron - Unfortunately, I can't speak to what the police department's policy is on Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW), but I can give you a bit of insight into the military's policy and what cardiologists generally recommend in terms of competitive sports.

The important thing is to know that all WPW is NOT the same. The term WPW is generally used in reference to a condition in which there are accessory pathways in the heart allowing for ventricular preexcitation. So what the heck does that mean???

The heart is normally made up of two upper chambers (the atria) and two lower chambers (the ventricles) that are electrically separated by a single gateway: the AV node. Normally, an electrical signal starts from the SA node (your inborn pacemaker) at the top of the heart, causing the top chambers to contract. The electrical signal gets to the AV node where it pauses for about 1/5 of a second before continuing on, causing the bottom chambers to contract.

The "accessory pathway" that is characteristic of WPW is an extra muscle bundle that connects the top and bottom chambers. This gives the electrical signal an alternate route to the bottom chambers. Because the muscle bundle does not create a normal pause the way the AV node does, this can sometimes be seen on an EKG as premature activation of the bottom chambers.

The presence of the accessory pathway can yield two main problems. The first is that it can be a set-up for a short circuit wherein the electrical signal goes from the top chambers, through the AV node, down to the bottom chambers, backwards UP through the accessory pathway, and through the AV node again over and over again. When this happens, the person with WPW feels their heart suddenly take off at a rate of 150bpm or more. This is uncomfortable, of course, but usually not life-threatening.

The reason we are concerned about WPW in athletes and in military pilots, is that the AV node (being that is a sort of "gatekeeper") only allows so many impulses to get down to the bottom chambers per minute. The accessory pathway has no such properties. If a person with WPW develops a rhythm called "atrial fibrillation" in which the top chambers start beating at a rate of 400bpm or more, the accessory pathway can allow the bottom chambers to be barraged by electrical impulses leading to a fatal rhythm called "ventricular fibrillation" that causes sudden death. THAT is the main issue.

The GOOD NEWS is that WPW is a condition that is potentially curable. So you have an extra connection? We now have ways of getting rid of that abnormal connection with a non-surgical procedure. This is called radiofrequency (RF) ablation and, in experienced hands, has a success rate well over 90%.

If a person has the previously mentioned signs of premature "excitation" of the bottom chambers on EKG, but has never had an episode of an abnormal rhythm like I described above, the risk of sudden death is actually very low. Usually, these people are allowed to participate fully in sports, but competitive athletes (such as professionals or Olympic athletes) are often taken for further testing before being cleared. Any athlete who HAS had a history of an abnormal fast heartbeat must get further testing before they are allowed to compete. The air force will not take anyone with the above described EKG abnormalities unless further evaluation shows no history of abnormal heart rhythms.

Further testing means a catheter based procedure in which we look to see how well the accessory pathway can conduct an electrical signal. The better a conductor it is, the higher the risk to the patient. If there is a history of abnormal heart rhythms OR the accessory pathway appears to be a very good conductor, we can use catheters to perform RF ablation and eliminate the accessory pathway. Once this is done, the person with WPW is generally allowed to participate fully in competitive sports AND can join the military a few months after successful ablation.

I strongly urge you to talk to your doctor and ask for referral to a cardiologist trained in ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY if you have not already seen one. They can tell you whether you would be allowed to join the military or the police force AND whether you should have further testing and/or radiofrequency ablation. Whew! That's a lot of information! I hope you find it helpful!

Answer 2

That depends on if you're symptomatic, have received or are undergoing treatment for it, the police department and what type of position you hope to fill within the PD.

All police departments that I'm aware of require physical examinations and if you have symptoms they could either be caught by the physician or missed entirely depending upon how subtle they are.

If you don't disclose your condition or it isn't discovered upon examination and you suffer health consequences from your condition you could lose your job and/or health insurance as well as possibly be accused of attempting to commit fraud for withholding information on a pre-existing condition.

Answer 3

Hehe Have a star on me! xx

Answer 4

why not ask a cop in your town. they can better answer this one.

Answer 5

Thanks for the answers EVERYONE xx