On Tuesday, September 16, nine members of the Tufts University Men’s Division III Lacrosse Team were hospitalized and diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis, a rare, life-threatening muscle disease.
50 of the lacrosse team’s members engaged in a 45-minute workout led by a school alumnus who recently graduated as a Navy SEAL. Soon after, a dozen athletes fell ill, and nine were hospitalized and diagnosed with the disease, characterized by a rapid breakdown of muscle tissue. Patrick Collins, a Tufts spokeswoman, said the workout was voluntary and supervised. However, Tufts chose not to disclose who supervised it.
Rhabdomyolysis, commonly referred to as rhabdo, is relatively uncommon. However, strenuous exercise under increased temperature and humidity increases an individual’s chance of developing rhabdo. A study of military personnel showed that exertional rhabdo is more common in military recruits, with around 22 annual cases per 100,000 recruits. The same study showed that young and physically active individuals—such as Tufts’ lacrosse team—have lower risks of developing exertional rhabdomyolysis.
On Wednesday, September 25, Tufts issued a statement via email announcing that all nine lacrosse players had been discharged and were on their way to recovery.
“Our thoughts are with the players and their families, and we are hoping for their quick return to good health under the care of local medical experts,” Collins said in a written statement, “Meanwhile, we are closely monitoring the condition of the rest of the team and have postponed all team practice activities until each team member has been evaluated and medically cleared to return to participation.”
Tufts has begun an independent investigation to “determine exactly what happened, before, during, and after the workout.” The university states that its goal is to review procedures and policies and identify measures to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
