Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Bills Nation is hanging onto prayer and hope as they await further word on the condition of Damar Hamlin. The Buffalo Bills announced overnight that Hamlin was in critical condition following cardiac arrest on the field Monday night.
Noted physician Dr. Laszlo Mechtler watched the incident and tells WBEN that, in a best case scenario, Hamlin 'should do well' after the cardiac event on the field during the Monday Night Football game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Mechtler, Medical Director of the DENT Neurologic Institute, referenced a rare condition known as Commotio Cordis which may have followed the apparent blunt trauma to Hamlin's chest and led to the cardiac arrest the Bills referenced in a statement overnight.
While Mechtler is not involved in the case and is offering medical insight based on the information available, he does point to key encouraging signals that would offer hope for a recovery for Hamlin. CPR, he says, was administered for as long as 9 minutes and an AED(Automatic External Defibrillator) was utilized and if there was no significant oxygen loss or damage to the heart in that process, he would be hopeful.
"As good as CPR is, it’s not perfect," Mechtler cautions.
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Hamlin was intubated and sedated as part of the treatment, which Mechtler points to as common procedure. Mechtler expects a battery of tests to be completed to determine if there was any oxygen loss or cardiac damage. A key question that needs to be answered, he said, is; "Is there anything congenitally wrong with his heart that nobody knew about?" Mechtler is encouraged by the fact Hamiln is a strong, young man at 24 years of age.
In similar cases, Mechtler has seen intubation and sedation removed 24 to 36 hours after the incident.
"It's a rare phenomenon," Mechtler said and admittedly horrifying to have seen it unfold on the field before teammates, fans and on a LIVE television broadcast.
Mechtler pointed to an incident in the soccer world involving Danish player Christian Eriksen in 2020 competition. Eriksen fully recovered and returned to play in 2022. There are some similarities in the incident, however Mechtler notes Eriksen did not suffer blunt force prior to the cardiac event.
In a later interview on WBEN Tuesday, Mechtler told WBEN's Joe Beamer that Hamlin actually died on the field. He said the medical staff came out within ten seconds and started to administer CPR and used an automated external defibrillator (AED), which brought him back.
"As soon as he had a rhythm, his blood pressure came back. He had blood going to his brain. In the best case scenario," Mechtler said, "I'm quite optimistic."
The questions that remains, was this a one in a million hit to the chest, causing arrhythmia or does he have something congenitally wrong with his heart? "We don't know yet, added Mechtler. But I'm optimistic that one day he may even come back to play football."
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