When Athletes Faint while playing Sports
Athletes are supposed to be the best examples of good health that can be found in the world. Their bodies are in top condition and they are physically fit. But sometimes even athletes have health problems and one of the strangest
is when they spontaneously faint after and during a game. Athletes have been known to suddenly fall to the ground unconscious and even though it is usually harmless, it can be indicative of heart problems later on in life. What are the reasons that this strange
health issue takes place in athletes and is there anything that can be done to stop it happening?
Even though it is not an everyday occurrence, fainting while playing a sport is common enough to be diagnosed as a medical condition that can afflict some athletes. Fainting during or after strenuous exercise is known as syncope
and it occurs when an athlete’s blood pressure drops and the flow of blood to the brain decreases causing him or her to lose consciousness. It does not have any long term effects and is not thought to be life threatening but doctors worry that it could be
an early signal for the onset of heart problems in later life. As an athlete becomes older, they have a tendency to get bouts of low blood pressure, it could put pressure on their overworked heart and they may be in risk of having a heart attack when they
stop playing sports and retire. The interesting thing about syncope is the fact that it occurs when an athlete has not had any sort of head trauma. The absence of head injuries are a sign of low blood pressure causing the brain to get less oxygen supply and
a person to faint suddenly.
There are many examples when this has happened during a game and it has been a serious cause of concern for the team’s medical staff. A French football player named Bafetimbi Gomis, fainted while training with the national team.
He was helped off the pitch and even though he returned to continue the session, it was the third time he had fainted. Another very strange incident took place when a synchronised swimming team was in the middle of a routine. Three of the swimmers, all teenage
girls, fainted at the same time in the pool and had to be rescued. Even though they were fine afterwards this was one of the most bizarre incidents of fainting to take place. The final example of weird fainting took place during a basketball game in the NBA.
The Denver Nuggets were playing against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver star Carmelo Anthony crashed into Kevin Durant and fell down. He was called for travelling but he did not get up. He was lying on the court having lost consciousness and both teams
continued to play the game and they even played around the fainted player lying on the court.
Even though this strange incident is rare, syncope still occurs, but what is its implication to a sports team. The health of players is a very important area for any major sports team. Sports stars are assets for a team and they
spend a lot of money acquiring them. So when one of them suddenly faints on the field during play, it is a huge cause for concern for the team’s management. They need every player to be out on the field in top physical condition in order to make sure that
they can help the team win the game. An injured player is no good to them.
There seems to be help for spontaneous fainting though. Doctors have conducted research that suggests that two specific histamine receptors in the body cause low blood pressure to decrease and blood flow to slow down when they
stop working. If these two receptors can be targeted and corrected when they fail, then a person will not faint anymore. Even though this solution still needs to be tested further, it is a positive sign in the right direction.
The worst thing for a team to happen is for one of its members to suddenly faint on the pitch; it puts a halt to the game, can lead to health problems in the future for the player and sideline a talented asset of the team. So hopefully
more emphasis will be given to this problem in the future and if the medical staff of a team recognises the danger with this problem, we might see a lot less players fainting in the future.
Athletes are supposed to be the best examples of good health that can be found in the world. Their bodies are in top condition and they are physically fit. But sometimes even athletes have health problems and one of the strangest
is when they spontaneously faint after and during a game. Athletes have been known to suddenly fall to the ground unconscious and even though it is usually harmless, it can be indicative of heart problems later on in life. What are the reasons that this strange
health issue takes place in athletes and is there anything that can be done to stop it happening?
Even though it is not an everyday occurrence, fainting while playing a sport is common enough to be diagnosed as a medical condition that can afflict some athletes. Fainting during or after strenuous exercise is known as syncope
and it occurs when an athlete’s blood pressure drops and the flow of blood to the brain decreases causing him or her to lose consciousness. It does not have any long term effects and is not thought to be life threatening but doctors worry that it could be
an early signal for the onset of heart problems in later life. As an athlete becomes older, they have a tendency to get bouts of low blood pressure, it could put pressure on their overworked heart and they may be in risk of having a heart attack when they
stop playing sports and retire. The interesting thing about syncope is the fact that it occurs when an athlete has not had any sort of head trauma. The absence of head injuries are a sign of low blood pressure causing the brain to get less oxygen supply and
a person to faint suddenly.
There are many examples when this has happened during a game and it has been a serious cause of concern for the team’s medical staff. A French football player named Bafetimbi Gomis, fainted while training with the national team.
He was helped off the pitch and even though he returned to continue the session, it was the third time he had fainted. Another very strange incident took place when a synchronised swimming team was in the middle of a routine. Three of the swimmers, all teenage
girls, fainted at the same time in the pool and had to be rescued. Even though they were fine afterwards this was one of the most bizarre incidents of fainting to take place. The final example of weird fainting took place during a basketball game in the NBA.
The Denver Nuggets were playing against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver star Carmelo Anthony crashed into Kevin Durant and fell down. He was called for travelling but he did not get up. He was lying on the court having lost consciousness and both teams
continued to play the game and they even played around the fainted player lying on the court.
Even though this strange incident is rare, syncope still occurs, but what is its implication to a sports team. The health of players is a very important area for any major sports team. Sports stars are assets for a team and they
spend a lot of money acquiring them. So when one of them suddenly faints on the field during play, it is a huge cause for concern for the team’s management. They need every player to be out on the field in top physical condition in order to make sure that
they can help the team win the game. An injured player is no good to them.
There seems to be help for spontaneous fainting though. Doctors have conducted research that suggests that two specific histamine receptors in the body cause low blood pressure to decrease and blood flow to slow down when they
stop working. If these two receptors can be targeted and corrected when they fail, then a person will not faint anymore. Even though this solution still needs to be tested further, it is a positive sign in the right direction.
The worst thing for a team to happen is for one of its members to suddenly faint on the pitch; it puts a halt to the game, can lead to health problems in the future for the player and sideline a talented asset of the team. So hopefully
more emphasis will be given to this problem in the future and if the medical staff of a team recognises the danger with this problem, we might see a lot less players fainting in the future.
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