Football Player's Cardiac Arrest: 'A Teachable Moment'
2023-01-05
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1Damar Hamlin, a player for the professional football team from Buffalo, New York, suffered a cardiac arrest during a game seen on national television Monday night.
2Health website Hopkins Medicine says a cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating.
3This stops blood flow to the brain and other organs.
4Cardiac arrest can cause a person to lose consciousness, become disabled, or die if they are not treated immediately.
5The Buffalo Bills football team said in a statement, "Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest following a hit in our game versus the Bengals.
6His heartbeat was restored on the field..." The team added, "He is currently sedated and listed in critical condition."
7The incident happened in a big Monday night game between the Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals.
8After stopping a Bengals player, Hamlin stood up and quickly collapsed on the field.
9Medical workers then performed cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, an emergency measure, to restart his heartbeat on the field.
10Players from both teams cried and prayed while Hamlin was receiving treatment.
11He was then taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
12The National Football League suspended the game.
13Hamlin was hurt while stopping, or tackling, Bengals player Tee Higgins in a play that did not appear unusually violent.
14Higgins was running after catching a pass when his right shoulder hit Hamlin in the chest.
15Hamlin tackled Higgins bringing him down. Hamlin then quickly stood up after the play and even adjusted his helmet before collapsing.
16Heart experts say it is too soon to know what caused Hamlin's heart attack.
17But they say a rare condition called commotio cordis is among the possible reasons.
18Commotio cordis happens when a severe blow to the chest causes the heart to shake, leading to sudden cardiac arrest.
19Dr. Rod Passman is director of the Center for Arrhythmia Research at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.
20He told the Associated Press that this condition rarely happens.
21For example, it could happen when a sharp hit directly over the heart takes place at the wrong time during the heart's normal beating activity.
22Commotio cordis happens "probably 20 times a year," and about 60 percent of those affected survive, said heart specialist Dr. Mark Link of UT Southwestern Medical Center in Texas.
23Dr. Aman Chugh is a University of Michigan cardiology professor.
24He noted that hard tackles are extremely common in football and that commotio cordis is extremely rare.
25Link said the main danger for survivors is brain damage from lack of oxygen when the heart stops pumping blood.
26Doctors can reduce that risk with deep sedation to give the brain a rest, he said.
27Dr. Mariell Jessup is the chief medical officer for the American Heart Association.
28She said heart disease that already exists is the most common cause of sudden cardiac arrest.
29But Hamlin's medical history has not been made public.
30Jessup said it is "not uncommon" for an athlete to have a heart condition that doctors did not find.
31This can even happen to young players.
32The American Heart Association says more than 365,000 people in the United States have sudden cardiac arrests outside of hospitals each year.
33Their survival depends on quick CPR and electric shock to bring the heartbeat back to normal, as reportedly happened with Hamlin.
34"The teachable moment is learn CPR," Jessup said.
35Hamlin came to the Buffalo Bills in 2021 after playing college football for the University of Pittsburgh.
36He became a starting player this season after another player was injured.
37In 2020, Hamlin began organizing a yearly Christmas toy donation campaign in his hometown of McKees Rocks in the state of Pennsylvania.
38His goal was to get $2,500 for the effort.
39By early Wednesday, people had donated more than $6.3 million for the toy donation campaign.
40Rodger Saffold wrote about his teammate on Twitter.
41He described Hamlin as a "kind, caring, extremely hard worker."
42Saffold wrote that Hamlin is "loyal, honest and can always put a smile on your face. He is more than an athlete, he is a son and brother."
43J.J. Watt is a defensive player for the Arizona Cardinals.
44He wrote following the incident, "The game is not important. Damar Hamlin's life is important. Please be ok."
45I'm Caty Weaver.
1Damar Hamlin, a player for the professional football team from Buffalo, New York, suffered a cardiac arrest during a game seen on national television Monday night. 2Health website Hopkins Medicine says a cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating. This stops blood flow to the brain and other organs. Cardiac arrest can cause a person to lose consciousness, become disabled, or die if they are not treated immediately. 3The Buffalo Bills football team said in a statement, "Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest following a hit in our game versus the Bengals. His heartbeat was restored on the field..." The team added, "He is currently sedated and listed in critical condition." 4The incident happened in a big Monday night game between the Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals. After stopping a Bengals player, Hamlin stood up and quickly collapsed on the field. 5Medical workers then performed cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, an emergency measure, to restart his heartbeat on the field. 6Players from both teams cried and prayed while Hamlin was receiving treatment. He was then taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. The National Football League suspended the game. 7What happened to Hamlin? 8Hamlin was hurt while stopping, or tackling, Bengals player Tee Higgins in a play that did not appear unusually violent. 9Higgins was running after catching a pass when his right shoulder hit Hamlin in the chest. Hamlin tackled Higgins bringing him down. Hamlin then quickly stood up after the play and even adjusted his helmet before collapsing. 10Heart experts say it is too soon to know what caused Hamlin's heart attack. But they say a rare condition called commotio cordis is among the possible reasons. Commotio cordis happens when a severe blow to the chest causes the heart to shake, leading to sudden cardiac arrest. 11Dr. Rod Passman is director of the Center for Arrhythmia Research at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. He told the Associated Press that this condition rarely happens. For example, it could happen when a sharp hit directly over the heart takes place at the wrong time during the heart's normal beating activity. 12Commotio cordis happens "probably 20 times a year," and about 60 percent of those affected survive, said heart specialist Dr. Mark Link of UT Southwestern Medical Center in Texas. 13Dr. Aman Chugh is a University of Michigan cardiology professor. He noted that hard tackles are extremely common in football and that commotio cordis is extremely rare. 14Link said the main danger for survivors is brain damage from lack of oxygen when the heart stops pumping blood. Doctors can reduce that risk with deep sedation to give the brain a rest, he said. 15Dr. Mariell Jessup is the chief medical officer for the American Heart Association. She said heart disease that already exists is the most common cause of sudden cardiac arrest. But Hamlin's medical history has not been made public. 16Jessup said it is "not uncommon" for an athlete to have a heart condition that doctors did not find. This can even happen to young players. 17The American Heart Association says more than 365,000 people in the United States have sudden cardiac arrests outside of hospitals each year. Their survival depends on quick CPR and electric shock to bring the heartbeat back to normal, as reportedly happened with Hamlin. 18"The teachable moment is learn CPR," Jessup said. 19Who is Hamlin? 20Hamlin came to the Buffalo Bills in 2021 after playing college football for the University of Pittsburgh. He became a starting player this season after another player was injured. 21In 2020, Hamlin began organizing a yearly Christmas toy donation campaign in his hometown of McKees Rocks in the state of Pennsylvania. His goal was to get $2,500 for the effort. By early Wednesday, people had donated more than $6.3 million for the toy donation campaign. 22Rodger Saffold wrote about his teammate on Twitter. He described Hamlin as a "kind, caring, extremely hard worker." Saffold wrote that Hamlin is "loyal, honest and can always put a smile on your face. He is more than an athlete, he is a son and brother." 23J.J. Watt is a defensive player for the Arizona Cardinals. He wrote following the incident, "The game is not important. Damar Hamlin's life is important. Please be ok." 24I'm Caty Weaver. 25Rob Maaddi reported this report for the Associated Press. Hai Do adapted it for VOA Learning English with additional information. 26______________________________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28sedated -adj. given drugs to cause deep sleep to avoid activity or excitement 29critical -adj. (medical) involving great danger of death 30adjust -v. to move something to its correct position 31helmet -n. a hard hat used in sports that protects the head from injury 32athlete -n. a person who is trained in or expert at sports 33teachable moment -idiom an incident from which a lesson can be learned 34______________________________________________________________ 35We want to hear from you. 36We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 37Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.