LeBron James's son, Bronny, was released from the hospital days after a major health scare.
Bronny was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital Monday after suffering a cardiac arrest and losing consciousness during a basketball practice at the University of Southern California.
The consulting cardiologist in Bronny's case said Thursday he had been discharged home, where he's now resting. The doctor also noted the basketball player had arrived to the hospital "fully conscious, neurologically intact and stable" and thanked the "swift and effective response" by the USC athletics' medical staff.
I want to thank the countless people sending my family love and prayers. We feel you and I’m so grateful. Everyone doing great. We have our family together, safe and healthy, and we feel your love. Will have more to say when we’re ready but I wanted to tell everyone how much your…
— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 27, 2023
On Thursday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, LeBron addressed the scare publicly for the first time. He said his family was "doing great."
"We have our family together, safe and healthy, and we feel your love," he said in the post.
Bronny had been seen as a rising basketball star even before committing to being a Trojan this upcoming season; ESPN ranked the 6-foot-3 legacy to the NBA's all-time leading scorer as the No. 19 pick for incoming freshmen.
For now, it's unclear how the cardiac arrest will affect the teenager's college basketball career, but his father said the family "will have more to say when we're ready."
Of the 365,000 people who suffer out-of-hospital cardiac arrests each year, 60% to 80% end up dying before reaching a hospital, according to the CDC. Those who are able to be treated can have lasting symptoms, including brain injury, organ damage and psychological distress.
But the NCAA requires an automated external defibrillator be present at each "physical countable athletically related activity," which can improve chances of surviving for 66% of those shocked by one, according to the American Red Cross.
As for why Bronny James suffered the arrest, the CDC lists multiple causes as possible factors, including an arrhythmia, valvular heart disease, coronary artery disease restricting blood flow to the heart, or cardiomyopathy, which happens when the heart muscle becomes enlarged or stiff. A forceful blow to the chest, like from a hard ball, can also cause cardiac arrest, but the CDC notes this occurs in fewer than 30 reported cases each year.
