Here's Part 2....
Here's a link to an article from the "Scientific American"...
https://www.scientificamerican.com/a...-any-symptoms/
From the article... From an offensive lineman at Indiana University dealing with
possible heart issues to a University of Houston player
opting out of the season because of “complications with my heart,” the news has been coming fast and furiously. More than a dozen athletes at Power Five conference schools have been identified as having myocardial injury following coronavirus infection, according to
ESPN; two of the conferences—the Big Ten and the Pac-12—already have announced they are postponing all competitive sports until 2021. And in Major League Baseball, Boston Red Sox ace pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez told reporters that he felt “
100 years old” as a result of his bout with COVID, and of MLB’s shortened season because of myocarditis—an inflammation of the heart muscle, often triggered by a
virus. Said Rodriguez: “That’s [the heart is] the
most important part of your body, so when you hear that … I was kind of scared a little. Now that I know what it is, it’s still scary.”
Why are these athletes (and their leagues and conferences) taking such extreme precautions? It’s because of the stakes. Though it often resolves without incident, myocarditis can lead to severe complications such as abnormal heart rhythms, chronic heart failure and even sudden death. Just a few weeks ago, a former Florida State basketball player,
Michael Ojo, died of suspected heart complications just after recovering from a bout of COVID-19 in Serbia, where he was playing pro ball.
Here’s the background: Myocarditis appears to result from the direct infection of the virus attacking the heart, or possibly as a consequence of the
inflammation triggered by the body’s overly aggressive immune response. And it is not age-specific: In
The Lancet, doctors recently reported on an 11-year-old child with multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C)—a rare illness—who died of myocarditis and heart failure. At autopsy, pathologists were able to identify coronavirus particles present in the child’s cardiac tissue, helping to explain the virus’ direct involvement in her death. In fact,
researchers are
reporting the presence of viral protein in the actual heart muscle, of six deceased patients. Of note is the fact that these patients were documented to have died of
lung failure, having had neither clinical signs of heart involvement, nor a prior history of cardiac disease.
Samuel called it “extremely dangerous” for athletes diagnosed with myocarditis to play competitive sports for at least
three to six months, because of the risk of serious arrhythmia or sudden death, and several athletes already have made the decision to heed those dire warnings. We’ll likely see more such decisions in the very near future, as each sport enters its peak season.
Here's the last paragraph from the article for those like Chuck and Jeb who are constantly trying to say that masks, social distancing, and avoiding large gatherings is THE best way to prevent catching the virus...
"And for the rest of us? Wear a mask, social distance, avoid large gatherings, and spend more time in the great outdoors. I would echo the advice of J.N.: “Be careful. Just don’t get the virus in the beginning.” As of today, it’s still the best defense we’ve got...
To close, let's play this out under the current thought that between 10 and 15% of all collegiate athletes who contract Covid (many who're asymptomatic) develop some form of myocarditis. Approximately 480,000 athletes play at all levels of the NCAA (from the NCAA website). At the moment, Scott Gottlieb is estimating that by the end of this year approximately 30% of the U.S. population will have been infected. So, 30% of the 480,000 NCAA athletes is approximately 144,000. And, if even 10% of those who’ve contracted Covid have been also been diagnosed with some level of myocarditis, that’s a total of approximately 14,400 athletes who have likely developed some level of post-Covid infection myocarditis…
Above, you asked me… “On a serious note ... are you saying that a small handful of cases of myocarditis among tens of thousands of NCAA athletes is in any way comparable to the situation (some would say "epidemic") of NCAA athletes with concussions/head injuries, which have even more significant/extensive adverse outcomes than those who suffer from myocarditis (regardless of causation)?”
I’ll finish by answering your question with a question… Are you really going to try and argue that 14,400 meets the definition of “a small handful of cases of myocarditis?” If so, I think you’ll find you’ll be standing alone on that island.
