The Rise of the Medical Emergency, Pt. 50 - July 10th Reports
Raducanu out. A fan drops in the stands while Lehecka blisters. A mystery illness, an unconscious skydiver, another zombie driver, and a blind river rafter. Plus blood clots. It's TROME
1) Wimbledon clash STOPPED due to medical emergency in crowd as fans rush to scene on No.1 Court
‘A WIMBLEDON match was stopped due to a medical emergency in the crowd.’
‘The female fan was later taken away by a medical team and play resumed following an eight-minute delay.’
And then, snuck into the article, we also find out:
‘It came after Lehecka already had a medical time out due to a blister on his baby toe.’
‘Lehecka was forced to retire due to his foot injury bringing the match to a close at end of the second set.’
A medical injury brought the match to the close? Shouldn’t that be in the headline?
Also — a blister? That doesn’t sound so bad, does it?
Well, it made me think of Emma Raducanu. I’d heard of some curious blisters she’d experienced last year, and I wondered how things were looking for her.
Turns out they are not looking good.
Emma Raducanu shows off painful blister that ruined Australian Open challenge
February 5, 2022
‘“I have been struggling with blisters since I started playing really in Australia because 21 days, no tennis, my hands got pretty soft.
"From day one, day two, I was getting blisters pop up here and there.
"This particular one has been with me for about five days and I have been trying to tape it for every practice, and it would harden and dry out, but then once I would play again, another layer would just keep ripping off.
"It ended up being pretty deep. It's a bit annoying because I know it's something that will heal in a few days, but it's just unfortunate timing."’
So, at that point she had skyrocketed to the top of the tennis world, the sponsors all got onboard, then she got these blisters, and then she began losing, and she hasn’t stopped doing that since.
She lost in the quarter finals of the Citi open in August 2022. Lost again in the round of 64 at the Canadian Open a week later.
She beat Serena in August at the Cincinnati Masters, but lost in the round of 16 to Jessica Pegula, taking a medical timeout during the match. https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/34410074/serena-williams-run-cincinnati-short-lived-emma-raducanu-posts-round-1-win-straight-sets
And then it got worse as she suffered an historic plummet by the end of that month, dropping out of the US Open in the first round to Alizé Cornet after winning that tournament the previous year. She was out of the Slovenia Open fairly early, and so on, clocking “L” after “L.”
In the Korea Open, she made it to the semifinal, but dropped out for some sort of medical situation, having taken an “off-court medical timeout” for some kind of “glute injury” during the match.
https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/34654856/emma-raducanu-retires-injured-korea-open-semifinal
She had to drop out of an event after coming down with tonsilitis not long before the Indian Wells match in 2023. Then during that tournament she got tired.
‘[Raducanu] admitted to being asleep minutes before she was called to go on court.
"I didn't feel too good this morning," she told BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra. "I'm just so happy with the way I fought and dealt with the circumstances. I just woke up feeling not great to be honest. I felt quite ill so I'm just happy to have played the match and then to win it despite how I felt today. Today before the match, I did not warm up.
“Two minutes before I was called I was sleeping in the treatment room’ https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/tennis/tennis-emma-raducanu-indian-wells-29427419
Well done to win the match. She was later eliminated in the round of 16.
Then later in March she was experiencing some kind of wrist injury. She had it checked out after dropping out of the Miami Open in the first round. https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/tennis/emma-raducanu-miami-open-injury-29529393
“It’s something I have been managing for some time, I need to review it after this tournament," she said. “We have been managing it and keeping on top of it but the current solutions aren’t very viable in the long term. It has been annoying and frustrating but I have been enjoying the competition."
Then at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart she lost quickly and then a week later she withdrew from the Madrid Open due to a “hand injury.”
‘Emma Raducanu withdrew from the 2023 Madrid Open on Wednesday, hours before her first-round match, citing an injury to her right hand.’ https://www.sportskeeda.com/tennis/news-emma-raducanu-withdraws-madrid-open-2023-due-hand-injury
And then by the time Wimbledon rolled around it was triple surgery time.
‘Raducanu did not compete in Wimbledon this year after a wrist injury forced her to withdraw from the grass court season and subsequent tournaments. She underwent triple surgery - on her ankle and both wrists - in May, and has been recovering ever since.’
https://www.sportskeeda.com/tennis/news-emma-raducanu-takes-breather-greece-injury-layoff-continues-ahead-potential-us-open-return
So, those blisters Raducanu had last year seemed to portend an endless stream of mysterious injury.
So, the news at Wimbledon this year, besides the shotted cramper Alcaraz taking the title, is that a match was shut down for a medical emergency in the stands. Never saw that growing up. And in that same match, one of the probably shot-injured players couldn’t even finish the match.
Meanwhile, the woman Emma Raducanu beat two years ago to rise to fame took the title this year. Raducanu’s current world ranking is 131st.
2) Officer fights for life after doctors find mystery bacteria in lung
‘What started off as a dry cough turned into a bacterial infection in his lung.’
He started feeling chills after work one day.
‘They went to the emergency room in Carolina Forest and learned he had pneumonia in his right lung.
He was given medication and sent home, but Michael continued to feel worse.’
‘"Which led to me passing out and falling in the bathroom. My kids were home with me, thank God they have their little cell phones, so they called a friend of mine and he had to come in there and help me," he said.’
‘When he woke up he was covered in a rash. He went to Grand Strand Medical Center.’
‘He was in and out of the hospital until finally a doctor at the Carolina Forest E.R. told him his pneumonia was getting better, but something new had developed in his right lung.
"She says she finds this cavitary lesion. She says it’s not good, it’s a pretty serious infection," he said.
The lesion started small but quickly grew to be five times its size.’
‘The infectious disease doctor told me yesterday they may never know how this happened or what it is," he said.’
‘Michael said if this treatment doesn’t work, he’ll have to have another surgery where they will remove 25% of his lung, which he says is risky.’
Officer down.
3) Man rescued from tree after losing consciousness during skydive
‘WSP said the man passed out during the dive due to the G-force, but his emergency parachute opened and he landed in a tree on the Washington State Patrol Academy drive course in Shelton.’
In freefall the g-force is one. And if his parachute had opened — which causes an increase in the g-force — then would the emergency parachute also have to open as well? I shouldn’t think so. But I’m pretty sure the answer’s “No.” I don’t know how to skydive.
‘After he was rescued from the tree, the man was shaken but appeared to be OK.
He was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle as a precaution.’
4) Hickory Woman Passes Away Following Friday Accident in Viewmont
‘A driver who was involved in an accident in Viewmont Friday (July 7) has died from her injuries. 76-year-old Judy Sipe of Hickory passed away the following day. Ms. Sipe was driving a Nissan Rogue at the intersection of 2nd Street N.E. and 13th Avenue N.E. when she collided with a Toyota Tundra.
Findings from a Hickory Police Department investigation indicate that Ms. Sipe suffered from a medical emergency at the time of the crash. She died as the result of injuries sustained in the crash.
Neither excessive speed nor distracted driving appear to be factors in the accident. No charges are expected.’
5) Mom tubing with kids loses vision, found clinging to tree branch
‘A woman who was recently river tubing with her young children suddenly lost her vision and the group had to be rescued, officials said.’
‘The mother and her young children were on the Sturgeon River when she called for help, according to a recent enforcement report from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. She reported she was having a medical emergency while in a tube with her young children. She had lost her vision and become lightheaded.’
‘The woman was transported to a local hospital.’
Wow. What a scene.
6) Oneonta mayor diagnosed with blood clot
A mayor of a New York town has a blood clot in his lungs. I don’t report that many of these where the diagnosis is reported. It falls into the category of “medical emergency,” though, because… give me a break. Blood clots?
‘Oneonta Mayor Mark Drnek was in good spirits Monday after he was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism Saturday.’
‘Drnek said that he had been feeling short of breath for the past week and he believes he may have overexerted himself while visiting businesses for the new shuttle sticker promotion last weekend.’
He didn’t overexert himself researching the safety of the shots, that’s for sure.
Adieu.
Those blisters almost look like Stevens Johnson syndrome which I believe has been reported as an adverse event.
*They* should call on you Mister Rabbit, for a diagnosis.
You are very good at it. Not baffled.