A rare injury to the heart caused by a blow to the chest may have sent Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin into cardiac arrest during a game in Cincinnati on Monday. And Northeast Ohio doctors are reminding parents, coaches and teachers that, although exceedingly rare, these injuries can happen to youth athletes regardless of what sport they play.
Dr. Joseph Congeni, director of the Sports Medicine Center at Akron Children's Hospital, said an injury called commotio cordis is the disruption of heart rhythm after a blow to the area directly over the heart.
Although the cause of Hamlin's injury has not been confirmed, experts say it may be what caused Hamlin's heart to stop while playing.
Hamlin's heartbeat was reportedly restored on the field. He remains in critical condition, according to news reports.
The injury, while rare, is more likely to affect young athletes, Congeni said.
“Often it can be by a projectile, like a thrown baseball or a lacrosse ball or a hockey puck,” Congeni said. “But it can happen with a helmet or something else that would hit the person in the wrong spot to get the heart to go into this abnormal, chaotic rhythm.”
The cardiac event can be deadly, but survival rates have increased to more than 50% in recent years, according to a report from researchers at the University of California San Diego and Florida Atlantic University.
That’s likely due to increased awareness and widespread use of automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, often found at sports events and games, which can greatly improve chances of survival if used within three minutes of cardiac arrest, the report said.
Cardiac sports injuries have long concerned sports doctors and parents, Congeni said.
“Before the AEDs in the 2000s, there was even talk about for certain kids playing sports, wearing... chest protectors so they don't get hit over this spot for baseball even or for lacrosse or hockey,” he said.
Congeni said the machine can quickly restart a heart and is simple enough that 8-year-olds can use it.
He said if an athlete is unresponsive and not breathing, an adult should provide CPR and use an AED. Most school workers are trained in CPR and using an AED, but Congeni said acting immediately can be the difference in saving a life.
He said coaches should always make sure they have an AED nearby and check the battery to make sure it still works.
