Three Things Thursday highlights three things I am paying attention to as an epidemiologist each week.
Hoping these posts help to educate and empower you
to be healthy and create healthy communities.
Today’s Three Things Thursday focuses on football and what happened to Damar Hamlin of the Buffalo Bills on Monday night (1/2). In case you missed it, Damar Hamlin (#3 on the Bills) suffered a cardiac arrest after making a tackle during Monday’s game against the Bengals. Hamlin collapsed on the field in front of a national television audience. CPR was administered on the field (again, in front of everyone). And an automated external defibrillator (AED) was used to restart his heart (more below). He was taken off the field and by ambulance to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
As of 10:30 this morning, the Buffalo Bills organization is reporting —
"Per the physicians caring for Damar Hamlin at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Damar has shown remarkable improvement over the past 24 hours. While still critically ill, he has demonstrated that he appears to be neurologically intact. His lungs continue to heal and he is making steady progress. We are grateful for the love and support we have received."
As Hamlin recovers and football fans (from all teams) pray for his recovery, there are (at least) three things we can all learn from the events of Monday night.
Therefore today’s Three Things Thursday — focuses on Damar Hamlin’s cardiac arrest.
The first thing to know — vocabulary matters.
Hamlin suffered from a cardiac arrest; NOT a heart attack (also called an MI, or myocardial infarction). Cardiac arrest and a heart attack are NOT synonyms. They are different. According to the American Heart Association, cardiac arrest occurs when the heart malfunctions or stops beating unexpectedly. It is an “ELECTRICAL” problem in the heart. A heart attack, on the other hand, occurs when blood flow to the heart is blocked. Heart attacks are a “CIRCULATION” problem.
Hamlin’s cardiac arrest was likely caused by commotio cordis, which is when a sudden impact to the chest causes cardiac arrest. There is a Commotio Cordis registry and approximately 10-20 cases are added each year. This is a VERY rare event. Approximately one-third of commotio cordis victims can be resuscitated. The majority of cases are fatal.
The second thing to note, the quick response from medical and emergency technicians on the field saved Hamlin’s life. The first responders administered CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and used an AED to restart his heart.
Chest compressions alone help to circle the remaining oxygen in an individual’s body following a cardiac arrest. Compressions combined with breaths provide additional oxygen to circulate throughout the body.
We should all learn CPR and how to use an AED.
Even children can perform CPR.
It is a life-saving skill that we should all know how to perform.
Please make it a New Year’s Resolution to learn CPR (if you don’t know it already). You can find a CPR (or first aid training) class near year here.
AEDs can increase a cardiac arrest victim’s chances of survival. An AED will automatically analyze the heart rhythm of an individual experiencing a cardiac arrest and (when appropriate) will deliver an electrical shock to the heart to restore its normal rhythm. AEDs are not difficult to use, but training is recommended. Many CPR classes will also teach you how to use an AED.
Again, please make it a New Year’s Resolution to learn CPR and how to use an AED.
The third thing to note from Monday’s football game — within minutes of Hamlin’s cardiac arrest, many people online sought to link his injury and the COVID vaccine.
AHHHHHH — we must stop spreading misinformation and unsupported claims on social media.
Misinformation is deadly.
Before Hamlin was carried off the field on Monday, social media posts (mostly on Twitter) claimed WITHOUT evidence that Hamlin’s collapse was caused by the COVID vaccine. The cause of Hamlin’s cardiac arrest was unknown while he was laying on the field (it still officially is, but it was likely the result of commotio cordis). And we do not know for sure if he was vaccinated (although more than likely he was, as 95% of all NFL players received their COVID vaccines).
One of the rumors swirling online was that a ‘doctor’ was claiming he gave Hamlin his COVID booster shot last week. This is untrue. There is no evidence that this individual is a doctor and their Twitter account has since been deleted.
But the damage has been done.
New seeds of doubt regarding the safety and effectiveness of vaccines have been planted. Physicians interviewed by The Associated Press say there’s no indication Hamlin’s vaccine status played a role in his cardiac arrest, and there’s no evidence to support claims that a number of young athletes have died as a result of COVID vaccinations.
According to Dr. Naomi Smith, who studies misinformation on social media —
“COVID misinformation does actually kill people who take it seriously.”
In light of how easy it is to share information online, I would urge (beg!!) you all to make it a New Year’s Resolution to — scrutinize your news sources, pay attention to details (a real doctor would know that sharing the personal health information of a patient via Twitter is a gross violation of HIPAA), and think before you share.
If something online seems too sensational to be true, it probably is.
You can stop the flow of misinformation by NOT SHARING.
Do you have more questions about Hamlin, cardiac arrest, CPR, or misinformation on social media? Please ask me —
And please share this with your friends and family, and make plans to take a CPR class together during January.