Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts joins record of athletes identified with blood clots
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles is the most recent skilled athlete to endure blood clots, becoming a member of Victor Wembanyama, Chris Bosh, Damian Lillard and others.
The one-time Super Bowl MVP is anticipated to overlook the remainder of the season because of blood clots in his lungs, an individual conversant in the state of affairs advised The Associated Press on Monday. The particular person spoke to the AP on situation of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the well being matter.
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Hurts was positioned on injured reserve Saturday, two days after the workforce revealed he has a blood clot in his calf. The Eagles and Hurts’ agent, Nicole Lynn, launched extra data on his situation Monday. They stated Hurts has deep vein thrombosis and bilateral pulmonary emboli, which means a blood clot has traveled to the lungs.
The prognosis introduced new consideration to the situation, its dangers and coverings, whereas elevating questions on why so many athletes have been identified with blood clots lately.
Here are some solutions:
What is deep vein thrombosis?
DVT, or deep vein thrombosis, is the time period for a blood clot that varieties in a deep vein, often within the decrease legs. Sometimes it could break off and journey into the lungs, lodging in a blood vessel to dam blood circulate. That’s referred to as a pulmonary embolism and it may be life-threatening.
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Any variety of issues could cause deep vein thrombosis, starting from immobility and trauma to household historical past and dehydration. Symptoms embody inexplicable swelling and discoloration or ache, or some mixture of these components, and consultants say the concern is the clot touring by the bloodstream, inflicting a pulmonary embolism or demise.
“When you may have a DVT within the leg or the arm, there’s an opportunity that it’s going to break away, and when it breaks free, it could find yourself lodged within the lung,” Mary Cushman, a hematologist and professor of medication on the University of Vermont, has stated. “And if it is massive sufficient, that may kill an individual.”
What is the therapy?
Taking blood thinners is the commonest plan of action. Sometimes surgical procedure is concerned or blood thinners for the long run. Hurts’ therapy entails blood thinners, and he won’t be allowed to take part in any soccer actions till he’s off them.
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Are athletes extra more likely to have it?
Richard Ricciardi, a professor on the George Washington University School of Nursing, stated there isn’t a proof to recommend elite athletes are extra predisposed to blood clots than these of comparable ages within the normal inhabitants.
“I don’t consider there are any large-scale research that evaluate elite athletes with non-athletes,” Ricciardi stated. “Athletes are usually thought-about low danger for blood clots, however they face a cluster of sport-specific danger components, so they might have a better danger than anticipated for younger, match individuals.
“High-contact sports activities theoretically might elevate blood clot danger, primarily by collision and trauma-induced blood vessel wall harm,” he added. “But to my information no research straight quantify how a lot contact sports activities enhance danger versus noncontact sports activities.”
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The danger for individuals of their 20s and 30s of growing deep vein thrombosis or a pulmonary embolism is one in 10,000.
One potential purpose blood problems might come to mild extra typically with elite athletes, although, is the quantity of medical care they’re supplied with frequently.
Can air journey enhance dangers?
“Frequent long-haul air journey plausibly will increase blood clot danger in elite athletes, however to my information no athlete-specific research have been performed,” Ricciardi stated. “Risk is best in flights of eight hours or extra. However, the danger per flight stays low in wholesome, match people, and danger is concentrated in these with extra well being danger components.”
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Here’s a have a look at different athletes who’ve had blood clots:
Victor Wembanyama
His 2024-25 season ended after he was identified with a blood clot in his proper shoulder. The 7-foot-4 phenom from France bounced again final season, ending third in NBA MVP voting and successful the league’s Defensive Player of the Year award as he led the San Antonio Spurs to the NBA Finals.
Damian Lillard
The nine-time NBA All-Star scored 16 factors with the Milwaukee Bucks on March 18, 2025, and a couple of week later the workforce stated he had deep vein thrombosis in his proper calf. Lillard returned for the playoffs and tore his Achilles tendon, an harm that stored him out of the lineup final season in his return to Portland.
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Chris Bosh
A decade earlier, blood clots ended the profession of the Basketball Hall of Famer. He was averaging 19.1 factors and seven.4 rebounds in 33.5 minutes through the 2015-16 season and had simply arrived in Toronto for that 12 months’s All-Star Game when a clot in certainly one of his legs was found on the age of 31.
Ausar Thompson
The NBA All-Defensive workforce participant missed the final month of his rookie season two years in the past with a blood clot. He was not cleared to play through the first month of his second season whereas he labored by a medical course of with the NBA and the gamers’ union.
Nelly Korda
The present No. 1 participant in girls’s golf missed four months in 2022 — the 12 months after she gained her first main title — due to a blood clot in her left arm that required surgical procedure.
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Frederik Andersen
Nearly three years in the past, the Carolina Hurricanes goaltender had medical exams that discovered blood clots. He performed for the Hurricanes final season as they gained the Stanley Cup and is at the moment recovering from a knee harm with the Edmonton Oilers.
Merrill Kelly
The right-hander, who has had blood clots, has bounced again from his bouts to pitch for the Arizona Diamondbacks, going 10-14 in 29 begins final season.
Christian Barmore
The New England Patriots defensive sort out was restricted to 4 video games through the 2024 season after he had blood clots. He began 15 video games final season and has performed in 5 this 12 months with the Patriots.
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“I might have misplaced my life,” Barmore stated.
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AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi in Tampa, Florida, and AP Sports Writers Larry Lage in Detroit and Dan Gelston in Philadelphia contributed to this report.
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