Sports Rehab Write-Up: Lebron James Jr.
Phew! It looks like Bronny James is recovering alright after his recent cardiac arrest scare.
The James Family’s eldest son was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. following a sudden cardiac arrest late last month. Bronny was stabilized & released a couple of days later and is apparently doing much better – even showing off his piano skills in a video Bron posted on IG that same week!
Grand Rising!
Of course we’re all glad to see Bronny moving on from this traumatic event happy & healthy, but it does raise some serious questions about his future. Does this put our rising star’s career as a professional basketball player in jeopardy? What should the junior James expect long-term?
It’s important to highlight that, while rare, such cardiac events aren’t a new or unheard of phenomenon in the athletic population; for example, Buffalo Bill safety Damar Hamlin. Though Hamlin’s situation is clearly very different, it highlights the fact that many young athletes are at the risk of a shocking & debilitating sudden cardiac arrest every time they go out to play; speaking to the benefit of regular screenings & physicals.
There’s only one difference between sudden cardiac arrest & sudden cardiac death: a life-saving intervention. During an event, the cardiac rhythm is interrupted & blood circulation stops – that means no oxygen to the brain or vital organs. According to a 2022 review by Lam et. al, about 15-percent of sudden cardiac arrest survivors experienced a recurrence; though, recurrences mostly occur within the first year. The average person that experiences a cardiac arrest doesn’t survive; and for those that do, they often experience neurological deficits following recovery due to the lack of blood flow to the brain.
Sudden cardiac death is the most common medical cause of fatality in young athletes during sports & exercise (Peterson et. al, 2020); and, it has been for a while now, regardless of what internet conspiracy theorists might be implying lately. Unfortunately, if we look deeper into the demographics, sudden cardiac arrest & death are more prevalent in young males and even more so in young black males (Zhao et. al, 2019). You might say that Bronny is lucky to be alive right now.
So, what does the future hold for Bronny?
Well, to see him so gracefully & effortlessly playing the piano within a week of the incident is a very good sign! It’s impossible to look at anything we’ve seen from the young James so far & identify it as a neurological deficit.
We can also look to Damar Hamlin, who just recently made his way back onto the field, less than a year after his cardiac event. It can be done!
Damar Hamlin in action for the Bill’s preseason opener (8/12/2023)
According to TMZ Sports, Lebron & Bronny have made their way to the world-renowned Mayo clinic in Rochester, Minnesota to find some answers. As of right now, it looks like our heir to the throne has dodged a major bullet & will at some point be able to return to the court if he so desires; until then, we can only watch & wait!
For now, go get CPR & AED certified so that, if the time comes, you can prevent the loss of yet another young athlete!
More life & More blessings to the James family!
Sending good energy to the family of Caleb White, as well; Gone but not forgotten!
Works Cited & Further Reading
Peterson, D. F., Siebert, D. M., Kucera, K. L., Thomas, L. C., Maleszewski, J. J., Lopez-Anderson, M., Suchsland, M. Z., Harmon, K. G., & Drezner, J. A. (2020). Etiology of Sudden Cardiac Arrest and Death in US Competitive Athletes: A 2-Year Prospective Surveillance Study. Clinical journal of sport medicine : official journal of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine, 30(4), 305–314. https://doi.org/10.1097/JSM.0000000000000598
Sandroni, C., Cronberg, T., & Sekhon, M. (2021). Brain injury after cardiac arrest: pathophysiology, treatment, and prognosis. Intensive care medicine, 47(12), 1393–1414. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00134-021-06548-2
Zhao, D., Post, W. S., Blasco-Colmenares, E., Cheng, A., Zhang, Y., Deo, R., Pastor-Barriuso, R., Michos, E. D., Sotoodehnia, N., & Guallar, E. (2019). Racial Differences in Sudden Cardiac Death. Circulation, 139(14), 1688–1697. https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.118.036553
Lam, T. J. R., Yang, J., Poh, J. E., Ong, M. E. H., Liu, N., Yeo, J. W., Gräsner, J. T., Masuda, Y., & Ho, A. F. W. (2022). Long term risk of recurrence among survivors of sudden cardiac arrest: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Resuscitation, 176, 30–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resuscitation.2022.04.027
