Duck Paddy
Registered User
- May 4, 2010
- 959
- 0
I believe he said he's experienced dizziness often throughout his life, much as he has had migraines frequently.
Reminds me of women on birth control pills which can cause tiny clots resulting in migraines,dizziness, visual disturbance. Have a pal who gets that any time she's on The Pill.....Possibly he's experienced very tiny clots for years due to the hole in his heart.
Which remains un-repaired.
I really thought he'd have the proc to fix it before they let him play again, a la Ted Bruschi, but....guess we'll see.
I fear that as long as the hole remains un repaired, he will continue to have these issues. The poor blood flow due to the hole causes clotting, clots may cause strokes.
Perhaps his staying on aspirin the rest of his life will be all he needs, but I really would not feel comfortable if it were me. I'd go for repair to eliminate the cause.
I'm not a neurologist, but I am a surgical resident and may be able to clear some of this up a bit.
-His stroke/TIA may have been completely unrelated to the hole in his heart. A blood clot did not necessarily go from his legs, through his heart, and to his brain. Symptoms can be caused by narrowing of your carotid arteries that may cause a transient decrease in flow to a particular part of the brain. Decreased flow = symptoms.
-The hole in his heart is hardly effecting his cardiac output at all. If it were, he would never have become a professional athlete.
-My opinion: He may well elect to never get the hole repaired, and I don't think he'd be putting himself at significant risk.