Burt's second chance

Kayla Burt got a second chance at life on New Year's 2002. Now, she has a second chance at what was the most integral part of her first life: basketball.

A year and a half after being diagnosed with long QT syndrome, an irregular heartbeat that causes spastic vibration instead of pumping blood, Burt officially returned from retirement yesterday to rejoin the Husky women's basketball team.

Burt, who suffered an episode of cardiac arrest at home with her teammates, She retired from basketball after a defibrillator the size of a matchbox was surgically attached to the right side of her heart in order to detect an irregular heartbeat and shock the heart into resuming its regular contractions.

The device's position meant that Burt, who is left-handed, would have been able to shoot a basketball without fear of dislodging the device. Doctors informed her that playing Division I basketball would be too risky. On Jan. 7, 2003, Burt, just out of the hospital, announced her retirement from the sport.

It seemed as though Burt's basketball career was over. She retained her basketball scholarship and returned to sit on the bench with her team through the 2003 season. In September 2003, she assumed a position as a student assistant coach. She never relinquished her role as team captain.

Now a senior, Burt has decided to take the ultimate risk and capitalize on the two years of eligibility she has left. What caused her heart to fail on remains a mystery, but further medical testing has shown that long QT syndrome was probably not it.

According to Dr. Kim Harmon, the Washington team physician, extensive testing found no structural cardiac abnormalities and no apparent problems with the electrical systems of Burt's heart.

"Long QT is a clinical diagnosis," said Harmon. "Additional testing makes it unlikely that this was the cause of Kayla's cardiac arrest."

Just three days after she helped Washington to an 11-point victory against Washington State, Burt was rushed to the hospital after she collapsed and fell off her bed. Her teammate Loree Payne was with her at the time. Payne called 911 while teammates Giuliana and Gioconda Mendiola did their best to revive her with CPR before paramedics arrived.

Later, it was disclosed that Burt had been dead for two minutes before being revived.

Burt and her parents signed a contract yesterday absolving the UW from all blame if a similar episode were to occur because of her playing.

Burt's parents, Ken and Teri, issued a written statement expressing their support of Burt's decision to return to the court on Tuesday.

"When Kayla came to us last winter and announced her desire to try and return to playing, we realized that she was making an informed choice, and we would do what we could to support her," the Burts' statement read. "Please understand that this has very little to do with playing a game, but is more about finishing something she started and being in control of her own life."

Burt echoed her parents' sentiments in her own statement.

"Ever since I retired, I have wanted to step on the court again," she said. "I have a dream to compete here again here at Washington, and now it's more than a game to me."

Washington's first outing of the regular season will be against South Carolina on Nov. 14. It has not been disclosed whether or not Burt is expected to play.