Five members of the Tufts University men’s lacrosse team remained hospitalized Friday, several days after participating in a practice led by a recent Navy SEAL graduate, the university said.
A dozen players were diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis after a “voluntary (and) supervised” 45-minute practice session on Monday, a university spokesman said. Seven players were treated in the emergency room and released from the hospital, he said.
Rhabdomyolysis, commonly known as “rhabdo,” is a condition caused by overexertion that leads to the breakdown of muscle tissue, releasing toxic substances into the bloodstream and kidneys. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the condition can lead to kidney failure and be life-threatening.
Spokesman Patrick Collins said the university is engaging an outside investigator “to conduct a thorough investigation as quickly as possible with the goal of taking all necessary steps to ensure the safety of our student-athletes.”
Collins said: “We are working to determine the nature of the training and that question will be part of the investigation.”
“Our thoughts are with the players and their families and we hope they make a speedy recovery under the care of local medical experts,” he said. “In the meantime, we are closely monitoring the condition of the rest of the team and have postponed all training activities until each team member has been examined and medically cleared to return.”
About 50 players took part in the training, Collins said.
In May, the team defeated Rochester Institute of Technology to win the NCAA Division 3 championship.
This breaking news story will be updated.
Nick Stoico can be reached at [email protected].
