Features

Nic Rotolo, the Berkeley High Junior who collapsed and died on a San Jose ice rink during a hockey game last February, died from an irregular heartbeat, according to an amended death certificate released by the Santa Clara County Coroners Office Tuesday. Rotolo’s heart problem was most likely caused by a past viral infection, myocarditis, said Diana Hunter, a spokeswoman for the coroners office. 

Early reports linked Rotolo’s death to an opponent ramming his shoulder into Rotolo’s chest just seconds before Rotolo collapsed on the ice. 

Such sudden blows to the heart have been known to cause a fatal irregular heart beat, known as arrythmia. In an autopsy report, Medical Examiner Judy Melinek wrote that a videotape of the hit sustained by Rotolo demonstrated “a sudden arrhythmic death,” but since Rotolo already suffered from a heart ailment, his death could not be linked to the blow he sustained to a degree of medical certainty.  

Myocarditis is inflammation or degeneration of the heart muscle. A variety of medical conditions can cause myocarditis, including hypertension, but the most common cause is infection by viruses. 

—Matthew Artz