Doctor on ex-MLB player's injured son: "It's every parent's worst nightmare"
The son of former Major League Baseball player is fighting for his life after he was hit by a baseball.
Jason Lockhart broke his nose at a tournament in South Carolina earlier this month. Days later, the 15-year-old started bleeding heavily and doctors discovered his injuries were much more severe than they had thought.
Jason is the son of retired Atlanta Braves player Keith Lockhart.
According to his sister, Lockhart was placed on life support Friday to keep his movements to a minimum and prevent further bleeding.
His planned surgery Monday was postponed because his body was apparently responding slower than expected, reports CBS News correspondent Manuel Bojorquez.
Lockhart broke his nose in what seems to have been a freak accident.
While running to home plate, Lockhart was struck in the face by a baseball. The catcher was throwing it to the pitcher to tag him out.
That was June 17. Two days later, during a follow up doctor's visit, his nose began bleeding uncontrollably.
"It's every parent's worst nightmare," said CBS News medical contributor Dr. David Agus.
Agus says it's possible Lockhart was bleeding long before it was detected.
"We see it sometimes when people are hit, and the bleeding in the head doesn't show up inside the head until days to a week later," Agus said.
Last Tuesday, surgeons stitched a laceration inside Lockhart's nose. When that failed to stop the bleeding, he underwent several more procedures over the following days.
According to his sister Sydney, because even minimal movements could trigger bleeding, doctors decided to heavily sedate Lockhart and put him on life support.
On Sunday, surgeons blocked arteries in his nose they suspected were the sources of the bleeding. The family was told none of the blood was coming from Lockhart's brain.
"When you get trauma to the face, you worry that there'd be a slow bleed in the brain, but the CT scan should have showed that," Agus said.
Keith Lockhart was a major league infielder for 10 seasons, playing for the Braves from 1997 to 2002. He retired in 2003 and is now a scout for the Chicago Cubs.
Following his son's surgery Sunday, Lockhart tweeted, "We are all encouraged about today! #staystrongJ."
Sydney Lockhart reports there has been no additional bleeding since that operation, and that surgeons hope to confirm that with the procedure planned for today.
Sydney told "CBS This Morning" her family has been amazed by the outpouring of love, and urged people to continue praying for her brother.
