Overview
- Simpson collapsed while pacing a community mile in Raleigh in June and was revived on the track with bystander CPR and AED shocks before being taken to a hospital.
- Her condition worsened after arrival when she suffered a second cardiac arrest, was placed on life support, and was transferred to Duke University Hospital for advanced care.
- Doctors diagnosed her with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC), scar tissue in the right ventricle that disrupted electrical signals and caused the dangerous rhythms that stopped her heart.
- Simpson has had a defibrillator-pacemaker implanted, is back home in Colorado, will continue regular follow-up with Duke cardiologists, and says returning to running would be dangerous.
- ARVC is a rare, often inherited disease that raises the risk of life-threatening arrhythmias and usually requires devices, medication, and ongoing monitoring, which will shape Simpson’s long-term recovery and role in the running community.