
-
Maresca non-committal over Sancho's future at Chelsea
-
WHO facing $2.5-bn gap even after slashing budget: report
-
Real Madrid coach Ancelotti tells tax trial did not seek to defraud
-
Chinese tourists pine for Taiwan's return as Beijing jets surround island
-
Singapore detains teenage boy allegedly planning to kill Muslims
-
What is the 'Qatargate' scandal roiling Israel?
-
AI coming for anime but Ghibli's Miyazaki irreplaceable, son says
-
Swedish insurer drops $160 mn Tesla stake over labour rights
-
Hunger returns to Gaza as Israeli blockade forces bakeries shut
-
Rubio heads to Europe as transatlantic tensions soar
-
Like 'living in hell': Quake-hit Mandalay monastery clears away rubble
-
'Give me a break': Trump tariffs threaten Japan auto sector
-
US approves $5.58 bn fighter jet sale to Philippines
-
Tsunoda embracing pressure of Red Bull debut at home Japanese GP
-
'Outstanding' Hay shines as New Zealand seal Pakistan ODI series
-
El Salvador's Bukele flaunts 'iron fist' alliance with Trump
-
Stock markets mixed as uncertainty rules ahead of Trump tariffs
-
China probes for key target weak spots with 'paralysing' Taiwan drills
-
'Top Gun' and Batman star Val Kilmer dies aged 65: New York Times
-
US lawmakers seek to rename street for Hong Kong's jailed Jimmy Lai
-
Greece to spend big on 'historic' military shake up
-
Trump faces first electoral setback after Wisconsin Supreme Court vote
-
Hay shines as New Zealand beat Pakistan for ODI series win
-
Israel says expands Gaza offensive to seize 'large areas'
-
Curry drops 52 as Warriors win, Jokic bags career-high 61 in Denver loss
-
South Korea mobilising 'all resources' for violence-free Yoon verdict
-
Myanmar quake victim rescued after 5 days as aid calls grow
-
Real Madrid coach Ancelotti tax fraud trial set to begin
-
Warner showcases 'Superman' reboot, new DiCaprio film
-
'Incredible' Curry scores 52 as Warriors down Grizzlies, Bucks edge Suns
-
Asian markets edge up but uncertainty rules ahead of Trump tariffs
-
Nintendo's megahit Switch console: what to know
-
Nintendo to unveil upgrade to best-selling Switch console
-
China practises hitting key ports, energy sites in Taiwan drills
-
Oil, sand and speed: Saudi gearheads take on towering dunes
-
All eyes on Tsunoda at Japan GP after ruthless Red Bull move
-
'Image whisperers' bring vision to the blind at Red Cross museum
-
Hay shines as New Zealand make 292-8 in Pakistan ODI
-
Other governments 'weaponising' Trump language to attack NGOs: rights groups
-
UK imposes online entry permit on European visitors
-
How a Brazilian chief is staving off Amazon destruction
-
Meme politics: White House embraces aggressive alt-right online culture
-
China launches military drills in Taiwan Strait
-
US senator smashes record with 25-hour anti-Trump speech
-
Brazil binman finds newborn baby on garbage route
-
US senator smashes record with marathon anti-Trump speech
-
Trump advisor Waltz faces new pressure over Gmail usage
-
NHI Announces $63.5 Million Senior Housing Investment
-
Miami Church Covers 100% of Uber Rides to Easter Service-Tips Included
-
Niger junta frees ministers of overthrown government

Cardiac arrest of Bills' Hamlin may have been 'perfect storm'
The on-field cardiac arrest suffered by Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin may have been the result of a "perfect storm" of events in which a blow to the chest was combined with a split-second moment of vulnerability during a heartbeat, experts said on Wednesday.
Sumeet Chugh, medical director of the Heart Rhythm Center at the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai in California, said this was one of a number of potential explanations for Hamlin's medical crisis.
The 24-year-old Hamlin collapsed on the field after making a tackle during the Monday Night Football game between the Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals.
Hamlin was immediately given CPR, taken away in an ambulance and remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Chugh, in an interview with AFP, stressed that in the absence of more information from Hamlin's doctors any explanation is in the realm of "pure speculation."
But he said that because of the "obvious circumstantial evidence of the tackle" the cause of Hamlin's cardiac arrest may have been what is known as commotio cordis.
"It's a pretty rare event because it requires the perfect storm where some kind of blunt object has to strike the chest right above the heart in a tiny window of 30 milliseconds" -- a fraction of the time of one heartbeat, he said.
This throws the heart into "electrical chaos," Chugh said, and instead of beating at its normal 60 to 80 times a minute, it stops and goes into what is known as ventricular fibrillation.
Eugene Chung, a professor of cardiology at the University of Michigan, also said commotio cordis was a possibility in Hamlin's case, although "we do not have enough information to definitively say this is the cause."
- 20 to 25 cases a year in US -
Chugh said the injury is most commonly caused by a speeding hockey puck, a baseball or a lacrosse ball but can also be caused by a strike from a fist or an elbow.
"It's so rare my best guess is there are 20 to 25 cases in the entire United States in a whole year," he said.
The most prominent case involved a National Hockey League player, St. Louis Blues defenseman Chris Pronger, who was hit in the chest by a slap shot during a Stanley Cup playoff game in 1998 and went into cardiac arrest.
Pronger recovered and went on to play in the NHL until 2012, earning induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Chugh said there may be other potential causes for Hamlin's cardiac arrest, such as a heart defect or a genetic condition.
"Most of the time when you have a cardiac arrest on the field it's because the athlete has a heart condition," he said.
Heart conditions, though, "can be screened for relatively effectively," he said.
The Bills said Wednesday that Hamlin "remains in the ICU in critical condition with signs of improvement noted yesterday and overnight."
"He is expected to remain under intensive care as his health care team continues to monitor and treat him," the team said.
M.Thompson--AMWN