The possibility of injury is inherent in the game of football. Every week feels a little like rolling the dice when Kirk walks out onto that football field. As a running back, carrying the ball means an entire team of 200 pound players are out to get him. Last night he was "bull-dogged." It's a kind of tackle that is up high rather low and wrapped around the legs. In protecting the ball, Kirk came down on his shoulder...and so did the guy tackling him.
Assessment at the field said it was severely separated. Shoulder separations go on a scale from 1-6. Anything above a 3 requires a surgical repair. Our trainer, Missi Fisher and the other team's doctor felt Kirk's separation was at least a three, possibly as bad as a five. X-rays at Children's showed no breaks and no separation so we were relieved after expecting the worst.
Dr. Kenter, Loveland's team orthopedist and a shoulder specialist examined Kirk this morning. He said the shoulder was definitely separated, probably a class four and will need surgery. He said what probably happened last night was the separation had reduced enough to not look serious on x-ray by the time we were seen, but showed us with the eye of an expert where things still did not line up. Missi said it just isn't possible for the bones to be in the position they were when he left the field without tearing at least two tendons. Dr. Kenter was frankly surprised Kirk wasn't in a whole lot more pain. He'll be getting a CAT scan on Monday to see just how serious the soft tissue damage is and assess how soon and what kind of surgery Kirk will need or if he'll be able to play at all the rest of the season. *heavy sigh*
1 comment:
I hope he heals quickly. Such a difficult thing! Keep us posted.
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