Ryan Carter
MEDIA DISTRICT NORTH -- A funeral service was held on Tuesday at St.
Ephraim Cathedral for Christopher Mushmel, a 17-year-old Burbank boy who
died while running with friends, authorities said.
Mushmel, an 11th-grader at Monterey High School, died Thursday night
while running with friends in the 300 block of East Valencia Avenue,
police said.
When paramedics arrived, they found Mushmel in full cardiac arrest and
transported him to Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, where he was
pronounced dead, Burbank Police Sgt. Bill Taylor said.
"Detectives learned he was running with some friends, when he suddenly
collapsed," Taylor said. "It looks like he was involved in a footrace
with friends." Police were not aware of any outstanding medical
conditions, Taylor said, adding there were no signs of foul play.
Byron Patterson, a sports medicine physician at UCLA, said the causes
of death in such instances are as numerous as the incidents are rare, and
each year sudden deaths to teenagers stem from causes such as latent
forms of heart disease, complications from asthma and drugs.
"You can be totally asymptomatic and this could be the unfortunate
first sign," Patterson said. "This is what makes it so difficult for
doctors and the community."
The cause of death is pending the results of toxicology tests that are
expected in the next four to six weeks, said Scott Carrier, a spokesman
for Los Angeles County Coroner's office.
