Damar Hamlin Cardiac Arrest

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Overview

Damar Hamlin Cardiac Arrest refers to the sudden collapse of football player Damar Hamlin, a safety on the NFL's Buffalo Bills, after making a tackle during the team's game against the Cincinnati Bengals on January 2nd, 2023. Hamlin was taken to a local hospital after his injury where he was diagnosed with cardiac arrest. The game, then in the first quarter, was suspended. After the injury occurred, many on social media speculated Hamlin's collapse was the result of Commotio Cordis, a condition where an impact to the chest can stop a heart, though this is unconfirmed. Some conspiracy theorists also made unfounded claims that it was due to the COVID vaccine, stirring up backlash online.

Background

On January 2nd, 2023, the Buffalo Bills faced the Cincinnati Bengals during a Monday Night Football game. In the first quarter, Hamlin tackled Bengals receiver Tee Higgins after a 13-yard catch,^[1] a routine play that "did not seem unusually violent," according to AP.^[2] Hamlin then stood up and went limp on the field as his heart stopped moments later. Hamlin received CPR on the field and his heartbeat was restored as players were visibly shaken around him. He was then taken away in an ambulance after 10 minutes of receiving medical attention on the field.

The game was suspended for more than an hour before the NFL decided to suspend the match. Troy Vincent, the NFL’s Executive Vice President for Football Operations, stated that the players and coaches agreed to not resume play after a traumatic incident (ABC News report shown below).

Developments

While it is officially undetermined what caused Hamlin to collapse, the Bills announced on the morning of January 3rd, 2023, that Hamlin was diagnosed with cardiac arrest. As of January 3rd, he was in a Cincinnati hospital in critical condition.^[2] He regained consciousness days later and was later discharged to recover at home. The NFL ultimately canceled the game, which had major implications for the AFC playoff picture, as the Bills and Bengals were vying for the top spot with only one week in the season left to play.

After the injury occurred, several medical professionals on social media speculated it could be a case of Commotio Cordis,^[3] a sudden heart stoppage caused by impact to the chest at a crucial moment in the cycle of a heartbeat. While it is a rare event, a significant percentage of Commotio Cordis cases occur in sports. Twitter user @drdawg1996^[4] stated that as a physician, he believed Hamlin suffered from a case of Commotio Cordis, gaining over 14,000 retweets and 84,000 likes (shown below, left). Sports physician @DrJesseMorse^[5] also suggested it may be a case of Commotio Cordis, gaining over 160 retweets and 600 likes (shown below, right).

Some anti-vax proponents including Charlie Kirk and Stew Peters^[6] attempted to blame Hamlin's injury on the COVID-19 vaccine. These claims were harshly criticized on social media as baseless fear-mongering.^[7]

Sports pundit Skip Bayless drew heavy criticism for tweeting about what the NFL would do with the game during the moment.^[8] He later apologized and said he only meant to imply "[Hamlin's] health is all that matters. Again, everything else is irrelevant."^[9]

Hamlin's Recovery

On January 5th, doctors announced Hamlin had regained consciousness and was on a long but promising road to recovery. On January 22nd, Hamlin attended the Bills' playoff game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Some conspiracy theorists suspected that the "Hamlin" seen at the game was a body double and that Hamlin had actually died, but this was denied by Hamlin himself and other sources.

On April 18th, 2023, Hamlin announced that he would return to football. He also announced doctors had given him the "commotio cordis" diagnosis.