When a 28-year-old elite athlete ends up with blood clots in both lungs, people want to know what’s behind it. IMA President and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Joseph Varon joined The National News Desk to discuss Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts’ diagnosis, reminding viewers that clots can strike at any age or fitness level. He points to risk factors that come with professional sports, such as dehydration, injuries, and prolonged travel, and notes that many clots cause no symptoms at all.
Dr. Varon also weighs in on Hurts being cleared to play and fly home from London after doctors found a clot in his leg. He would not clear anyone on a blood thinner for a professional game, noting that being medically stable enough to fly doesn’t make someone stable enough to play. As for recovery, he explains that blood thinners don’t dissolve clots but keep new ones from forming while the body does the rest. As our followers will remember, IMA has covered the clotting concerns that emerged after COVID-19 vaccination in depth, too.
Check out these related resources from IMA below, followed by the full segment transcript.
Transcript
Jan Jeffcoat: Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is expected to miss the rest of the NFL season after doctors discovered blood clots in both of his lungs. And now questions are mounting over why the 28-year-old was cleared in the first place to play and then fly home from London after doctors discovered a clot in his leg. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell defended the league’s medical protocols yesterday but says he welcomes a review of how the Eagles handled Hurts’ care. With Hurts now on blood thinners and facing months of recovery, we’re taking a closer look at how blood clots develop, the warning signs, and when they can turn deadly.
And joining us now to discuss is Dr. Joseph Varon, President and Chief Medical Officer of the Independent Medical Alliance. Good morning to you, Doctor. Jalen Hurts, just 28 years old, one of the most physically fit athletes in the world, and now he’s dealing with blood clots in both lungs. How does something this serious happen to someone so young, so healthy, and what could trigger it?
Dr. Joseph Varon: Good morning, Jan. The first thing that people need to understand is that blood clots do not discriminate based on age or physical fitness. You can be 28 years of age, in extraordinary physical condition, and still develop a potentially fatal pulmonary embolism.
We generally look at three mechanisms why somebody gets a clot: injury to the blood vessel, changes in blood flow, and an increase in the tendency of the blood to clot. In professional athletes like this individual, dehydration, injuries, prolongation of travel, immobilization, and sometimes inherited clotting disorders can contribute. Obviously, being physical reduces the risk, but it doesn’t eliminate it. So again, being in excellent physical condition does not make you immune to a blood clot.
Jan Jeffcoat: And here’s what I find troubling about this, though, Doctor. When he was being checked out and cleared, doctors did discover a blood clot in his leg while he was in London, but then he was cleared to play football and then also fly back across the Atlantic. And now we know he has the clots in both lungs. Roger Goodell says the medical protocols were followed, but from a medical standpoint, how do you determine whether someone with a blood clot can safely play a contact sport or take a long flight?
Dr. Joseph Varon: Well, this is something that we have to distinguish, because there are two completely different activities. A patient that has a newly diagnosed deep vein thrombosis requires, obviously, prompt assessment and treatment with a blood thinner. I would not clear somebody to play a professional game if they’re on a blood thinner. Too risky. They can bleed, they can get in trouble.
Flying is another question. Air flying is possible, especially after treatment has begun, but a long transatlantic flight usually requires a little more individualized assessment. Again, being medically stable enough to fly doesn’t mean that you are medically stable to play a game.
Jan Jeffcoat: And a lot of folks associate blood clots with older adults or people who are not particularly active, but as you said, it does not discriminate. Jalen Hurts is living proof that being in great shape does not make you immune. So what are the warning signs that people should never ignore, and how quickly can a blood clot become life-threatening?
Dr. Joseph Varon: Well, first, the classic signs of a deep vein thrombosis are usually swelling in one leg or pain or tenderness in the area. However, in many patients, you don’t have absolutely any symptoms. It can be completely silent.
And many of these clots travel to the lung. And depending on the amount of clot that travels to the lung, you may have chest pain, you can have a rapid heart rate, you may be coughing up blood, you can be dizzy, you can faint. And some people can have just sudden death. And that’s the risky part of it.
So a clot in the leg can be dangerous. A clot in the lungs can be deadly. Indeed, there’s a study that shows that 80% of people that do not have treatment of their lung clot will die. But if you start treating them, their chances of dying are less than 8%. So that’s why we have to be extremely careful on this.
Jan Jeffcoat: Yeah, I was going to ask you about that, because Hurts is on these blood thinners. Doctors expect this recovery to take about three months. What exactly do blood thinners do? Can the body completely eliminate these clots? And what determines whether someone can safely return to normal activity without those long-term complications?
Dr. Joseph Varon: Well, again, this is one of the biggest misconceptions that there is out there. A lot of people think that blood thinners dissolve clots. They do not dissolve clots. What they do is they prevent more clots from forming. So when you have less clot burden, the chances that the clots will go to the lungs are less.
So blood thinners prevent the blood from getting worse. And then your body, over a period of three to six months, does the work. That means it reabsorbs the clot or dissolves the clot so that the clot goes away.
Jan Jeffcoat: Dr. Joseph Varon, President and Chief Medical Officer of the Independent Medical Alliance, thank you for your insights this morning. It was very informative. And for those folks at home who want to check out some more information, you can go to imahealth.org. Have a good one, sir.
