Hamlin incident prompts focus on high-profile sports injuries
Key Takeaways
The mid-game cardiac arrest of pro footballer Damar Hamlin has fueled the discussion of the potential dangers that athletes face.
Notable injuries have occurred in football (ruptured Achilles heel and multiple concussions), gymnastics (dislocated knees), and hockey (lethal laceration), prompting a review of safety protocols.
Precautions such as neck guards for hockey to reduce the risk of neck laceration, and changes to preseason football to lower the risk of concussion and other high-impact exposure are being touted by researchers to help prevent such incidents.
The sports world was in for a shock on January 2, 2023, when 24-year-old Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest and was revived during a game. The incident ramped up the ongoing conversation about the high toll of football (and sports in general) on the human body.
Unfortunately, sports injuries are a common cause of disability and, more rarely, death. The following are four sports injuries occurring between 2019–2022 that drew national attention and prompted analysis of the potential dangers of competitive sports.
Related: Damar Hamlin’s rapid recovery: Medical experts weigh inKevin Durant: Ruptured Achilles
Playing for the Golden State Warriors during the 2019 NBA finals, small forward Kevin Durant tore his Achilles tendon.[]
Both fans and players were alarmed, and the timing of the injury couldn’t have been worse. Durant had already missed nine games in a row due to a calf sprain, and the Warriors were trailing Toronto 3–1 in the championship series. Just 12 minutes into his return, Durant went down with a torn Achilles.
"Every experience I’ve been through in the league is obviously always ingrained in my mind, but that one is definitely always going to be a huge part of my career because [of] the type of injury I had."
— Kevin Durant, reported by Clutchpoints
Durant has a long history of lower limb injuries, with a medial collateral ligament sprain sidelining him in 2017. After the Achilles rupture, Durant ended up missing the 2019–2020 season, returning with the Brooklyn Nets for the 2020–2021 season.[]
Achilles tendon rupture commonly affects men aged between 30–50 years, according to research published by American Family Physician.[] It can present with an audible “pop” at the level of the injury, accompanied by severe pain, according to an article published by StatPearls.[]
Treatment can be either medical or surgical. Both serial casting/functional bracing and surgery have good outcomes, although the return to work takes longer for patients receiving medical interventions. Nonoperative treatments are preferred for individuals with greater comorbidities and a sedentary lifestyle, as per the StatPearls research.
Samantha Cerio: Dislocated knees
While competing in an April 2019 NCAA gymnastics regional competition, Samantha Cerio dislocated both her knees and tore multiple ligaments during a floor routine.[] In media reports, Cerio called the injury a “small setback”—despite having to retire from the sport and postpone both her graduation from Auburn University and her wedding.
That summer, Cerio overcame the setback to walk the graduation stage using crutches and, later, down the aisle unassisted.
Knee dislocation is often a surgical emergency, which necessitates fast identification, evaluation, and imaging, according to a StatPearls article.[]
Physicians should be on the lookout for dire complications including vascular injury and compartment syndrome. Patellar dislocations usually don’t require immediate surgical or vascular interventions.
Teddy Balkind: Lethal laceration
The death of 16-year-old Teddy Balkind following an unspecified neck laceration sustained during a January 2022 junior varsity ice hockey game sent shockwaves well beyond the community of St. Luke’s School in New Canaan, CT.[] The NHL even commemorated the young athlete’s death.
As reported by CBS News, Balkind’s death stoked the call for all players to wear neck guards.[] As of February 2023, they are only required for goalies.
USA Hockey issued a formal statement on “neck laceration protectors” in 2022. Here are some highlights:[]
Existing neck laceration protector designs do not eliminate the risk of injury, with 27% of players experiencing these lacerations while wearing a neck guard.
Most neck lacerations recorded are superficial (61%) and only require neck bandaging.
Damage to the neck guard is not an indicator of resistance to lacerations.
Neck guards can shrink after washing, thus covering less surface area and offering less protection.
Neck protectors containing Spectra fibers were most resistant to cuts.
Tua Tagovailoa: Multiple concussions
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa holds the distinction of being one of a handful of NFL players to sustain multiple concussions during one season.
In a game against the Green Bay Packers on Christmas Day 2022, he experienced his second confirmed concussion for that season, as well as a third serious blow to the head, as reported by CBS Sports.[]
Because he didn’t show concussion symptoms, his injury did not trigger concussion protocols, and he wasn’t evaluated until the following day when he did show symptoms.
Concussions are a common injury in football and, along with other high-impact exposures (HIEs), contribute to neurological decline in players.
Researchers representing a consortium of Division 1 schools argued that concussions in football could be reduced by limiting risk during the preseason in an article published by JAMA Neurology.[]
The investigators found that in the five seasons between 2015 and 2019, there were 528,684 head impacts recorded among 658 Division 1 football players, with each player sustaining a median of 415 recorded head impacts each season.
Overall, 68 players experienced a diagnosed concussion, with 48.5% of the concussions happening during the preseason, which represented only 20.8% of the full season. Similarly, HIEs occurred twice as often during the preseason vs the regular season.
“These data point to a powerful opportunity for policy, education, and other prevention strategies to make the greatest overall reduction in concussion incidence and HIE in college football, particularly during preseason training and football practices throughout the season, without major modification to game play,” the JAMA Neurology authors wrote.
"Strategies to prevent concussion and HIE have important implications to protecting the safety and health of football players at all competitive levels."
— McCrea, et al., JAMA Neurology
What this means for you
Hopefully, the attention that high-profile sports injuries bring to the potential risks athletes face in the competitive arena will prompt regulations to help reduce such incidents. If you have patients who participate in athletics, you may want to discuss the possible risks they may face on the field, as well as precautions, such as neck guards for hockey, they can utilize for their protection.