3 Tufts lacrosse players still hospitalized one week after Navy SEAL trainee-led workout
MEDFORD – Three Tufts University men's lacrosse players remain hospitalized with a condition called rhabdomyolysis one week after participating in a workout led by a Navy SEAL trainee.
About 50 team members participated in what Tufts spokesman Patrick Collins described as a "voluntary, supervised, 45-minute team workout" on September 16. Collins said a Tufts alumnus who recently graduated from the BUD/S Navy Seal training program led the workout.
According to the Tufts spokesman, the three players who remain in the hospital are responding to treatment and "we hope that they will be discharged soon."
What is rhabdomyolysis?
Nine members of the team were hospitalized following the workout with rhabdomyolysis, also known as "rhabdo." The condition can be life-threatening.
A physiologist and anesthesiologist from the Cleveland Clinic told CBS News that rhabdo happens after injury or overexertion. The hospital estimates that about 26,000 people in the United States develop the condition every year.
Collins said that while some athletes have been medically cleared to resume training, all team practices are postponed until authorized by university medical personnel.
Tufts appoints independent investigator
An independent investigator has been appointed "to conduct a thorough investigation as quickly as possible to determine exactly what happened before, during, and after the workout."
The university said the investigation aims to assess the Tufts' response, review procedures and policies, and determine what can be done to prevent a similar incident from happening in the future.
"The team is a tight-knit group of young men who have shown remarkable resilience, understanding and care for each other throughout this episode. We will continue to monitor and work with them closely, and we hope for a rapid return to good health for all involved," Collins said.