A sign sits along a fence outside UC Medical Center where Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin remains hospitalized, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023, in Cincinnati.
Joshua A. Bickel | AP
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin’s brain function appears to be in good condition, the Buffalo Bills tweeted Thursday morning, following days of uncertainty and worry after the player’s cardiac arrest during Monday night’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
“Damar has shown remarkable improvement over the past 24 hours,” the Bills tweeted. “While still critically ill, he has demonstrated that he appears to be neurologically intact.”
Hamlin, 24, has been in intensive care after collapsing on the field from cardiac arrest during “Monday Night Football” on Jan. 2. The incident, watched by millions, occurred just after Hamlin collided with another player. It appeared that the other player’s shoulder struck Hamlin in the chest.
The Bills’ statement “is a really good sign,” said Dr. Todd Rice, director the medical intensive care unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. Rice has not been involved in Hamlin’s care. Usually by this point, Rice said, doctors are looking for any indication that the patient’s neurological function remains intact and the patient is responsive to basic verbal commands.
There has been no official statement about what caused Hamlin’s cardiac arrest. But experts not involved in his care have suggested that a rare phenomenon called “commotio cordis” was to blame.
Normally, the heart pumps oxygen-rich blood throughout the body about every second. There is a rhythm to the process, keeping the blood flowing at a healthy pace. But every time the heart beats, there is a tiny moment — less than a fifth of a second — that makes it vulnerable to the force of a projectile that can lead to a chaotic and potentially deadly heart rhythm.
It is in this exact moment, experts say, that a blow to the chest in the exact right place can launch an otherwise healthy person into cardiac arrest. The heart’s electrical system malfunctions, and the heartbeat rhythm goes haywire.
Thursday morning, Hamlin’s teammate Kaiir Elam said in a tweet, “Our boy is doing better, awake and showing more signs of improvement.”
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