Former NFL quarterback, CBS broadcaster and Eastern Illinois University graduate Tony Romo toured OSF Children's Hospital, spending time with some of the kids, sharing laughs, and learning about the services and care OSF Children's Hospital provides throughout central Illinois and beyond.

NBA Champion and Peoria's own Shaun Livingston joined Romo and UFC light heavyweight fighter Dustin Jacoby on the tour. Jacoby grew up in central Illinois and played football at Quincy University for four years. 

The smiles were evident as the kids got to speak with the guys about what they love to do including talking about football and video games.

The visit was made possible through the partnership with Metamora Fields golf course in hosting the OSF Children's Hospital of Illinois Pro-Am tournament June 28 - July 1. More than 100 golfers and celebrities are taking part in the All Pro Tour (APT) event. 

The APT is the largest developmental men's professional golf tour in the US. These events provide an avenue for professional golfers to hone their skills while preparing for a life on the PGA Tour.

Over the past 30 years, the APT has successfully graduated players to the PGA Tour. They include PGA Tour winners Andrew Landry, Brice Garnett, Cameron Beckman, Bubba Watson, and Ryan Palmer. Most recently the APT has seen Hayden Buckley, 2022 Masters Champion Scottie Scheffler, and runner-up Will Zalatoris find success at the highest level of golf. Over 35 players will walk the fairways of the PGA Tour in 2023 that began their career on the All Pro Tour.

B-roll: Tony Romo, Shaun Livingston and Dustin Jacoby visit OSF Children's Hospital 

B-roll: Metamora Fields APT

Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin survived sudden cardiac arrest after he collapsed in the first quarter of Monday night’s Bills game against the host Cincinnati Bengals because of quick action by the medical team. CPR was initiated just minutes after Hamlin made a tackle, got up, but then collapsed.

On the field, Hamlin was also given oxygen, and an automated external defibrillator was used to save his life. The device analyzes a heart rhythm and will deliver an electrical shock if necessary.

Hamlin, who was sedated, awoke 48 hours later in a Cincinnati hospital and scribbled a note that read, “Did we win?” according to media reports. Sudhir Mungee, MD, an interventional cardiologist with OSF HealthCare Cardiovascular Institute in Peoria, Illinois says those immediate measures on the field allowed Hamlin to survive the sudden cardiac arrest.

“So, two things that as a common citizen we all can learn is effective CPR and number two, to know how to use an automatic external defibrillator (AED). At most of the common places whether schools, colleges, business places, we have the presence of an AED. I think it is important to know how to use an AED because the earlier you can restore the rhythm from ventricular fibrillation to sinus rhythm, regular rhythm, the higher the chances of recovery.”

There is a free smartphone app called Pulse Point that acts as a community registry to identify where AEDs are located and specifics to identify where they can be found in case of emergency. The American Heart Association regularly offers CPR and AED training.

Hamlin remains in critical condition, and the cause of his cardiac arrest remains unknown. Still, his doctors say his recovery is remarkable and that his communication indicates he could be “neurologically intact.” Dr. Mungee points out, heart attacks from blocked arteries commonly cause out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, but in absence of heart attack, structural heart disease such as cardiomyopathy are among common causes of cardiac arrest.

In athletes, “hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. (That’s having a) very thick heart muscle, which is more prone to electrical disturbance, especially during strenuous activities.”

Dr. Mungee says cardiomyopathy could be inherited or brought on by a recent infection. There are other structural heart abnormalities that might not have been detected by the NFL’s physical. The football league’s exam does include an electrocardiogram (EKG) which records the electrical signal from the heart to check for different conditions.

If other causes are ruled out, Dr. Mungee thinks, although rare, something called commotio cordis (kuh-MOH-dee-oh KOR-dis) could be responsible for Hamlin’s cardiac arrest. This happens when blunt force hits an area of the heart at precisely the vulnerable moment between heartbeats.

“So about 10 to 30 milliseconds – if the impact happens during that risk window in that segment of the heart, with impactful energy,  it can certainly lead to irregular heart rhythm, which is called ventricular fibrillation, Dr. Mungee explains. “Now, many times, it can spontaneously resolve, but if it doesn't, ventricular fibrillation will lead to sudden cardiac arrest and collapse.”

Younger individuals are more susceptible to comotio cordis because, as Dr. Mungee points out, their chest wall is typically thinner.

What happened to Hamlin stunned fellow players and everyone watching the Monday Night football game. It also, no doubt, has raised concerns for parents of children who play high-contact sports. Dr. Mungee says this incident highlights the important role coaches play in protecting athletes.

“There is a tremendous role of your sports coach. For example, the coaches train our kids and athletes to know how to dodge the ball. If there is a pitch, how to avoid impact on the front of the chest, how to appropriately wear protective gear. That’s very important.”

As for his recovery, Dr. Mungee says it could take weeks or months for Hamlin to be restored to good health. How long will depend on damage to Hamlin’s vital organs, including the brain. He says neurological recovery leads the path for recovery of the rest of the body because it impacts all cognitive and motor functions.

Video Clips with Dr. Sudhir Mungee, interventional cardiologist, OSF HealthCare Cardiovascular Institute

A January grocery trip for Charlotte Davis turned out to be life-altering.

The Shipman, Illinois, woman was loading food into the back of her van when she says the hydraulics failed, and the back door slammed into her head.

While she didn’t lose consciousness or have any visible signs of trauma, Davis doesn’t mince words: “It hurt really bad.”

Davis says she put up with worsening headaches, garbled speech and weakened memory as long as she could.

“I tried to drive one day. I hit a flower pot, drove through the ditch, missed my turn, forgot where I was going three times,” Davis says. “My eight year old granddaughter told her mom, ‘Please don't let Mawmaw drive anymore. She's scaring me.’”

When a CAT Scan found no brain bleed, Davis wound up at the OSF HealthCare rehabilitation office in Alton, Illinois. She was skeptical at first but now considers herself a prime example of why you shouldn’t just shake off a head injury – whether it’s in a football game or just around the house. Otherwise, serious issues like the brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) may follow.  CTE is often seen in football players. In July 2022, officials announced the late NFL player Demaryius Thomas had CTE.

Physical therapist Kelly Bogowith cared for Davis at the Alton office.

“All concussions are a form of at least mild traumatic brain injury,” Bogowith says. “So it’s important to make sure that you get assessed and also ensure that you're not playing sports later that same day. A provider can give you education on how long you should be sitting out from sports and other physical activities, as well. And that might even include work.”

“Sometimes with concussions, we may not have symptoms for hours or even weeks afterwards. So it's important to get checked out by your physician, urgent care, emergency department, or athletic trainer, depending on your setting,” Bogowith adds. “But it's not something to shake off. And it can be especially important, too, to not have a second concussion because that can be very dangerous and even deadly.”

Every patient recovering from a head knock receives a specially-tailored plan, Bogowith says. The roadmap could include different types of therapy, like physical or speech language. It will always include at-home activities – stretches for physical therapy or puzzles for speech language therapy, for example. And the OSF HealthCare team encourages you to ask questions along the way.

Davis’ plan started with massages and stretches to relieve tension. She progressed to walking, then running on a treadmill.

“I beat that treadmill,” Davis says, beaming.

She beat the non-physical aspects, too. Davis’ memory and speech improved to the point that when she met with speech language pathologist Ashley Brim at the Alton location, it was a one-and-done.

“[Speech therapy] can range within working on targeting problem solving skills,” Brim explains. “So, either really basic problem solving all the way up to reading paragraphs of information. And trying to figure out information that, most of the time, people don't think about. We can just read it and figure it out. But when you have a concussion, and that is impacting you, it makes it 10 times more difficult.”

“We work on a lot of memory tasks,” Brim continues. “Exercises for working on memorizing word lists, figuring out different ways to help the patient memorize things better. So they associate the word to something else and then they use those associations to be able to remember what has been said to them and chain it all together.”

What people in Bogowith and Brim’s roles don’t want to see: people relying solely on pills to get through pain. That can lead to addiction and side effects. Therapy is somewhat the opposite, Brim notes. It gives the patient ownership of their recovery.

Davis agrees with that assessment and says her determination to see therapy through to the end has paid off in multiple ways. Most notably, she can handle playing with her eight grandkids.

“I want people to know that it's important,” Davis says. “I understand that it's a pain. It's not always convenient. There are always other things people want to do. But if your doctor says to do therapy, I 100% will tell you: go to therapy. You don't know how bad you need it until you actually go.”

For more information on types of rehabilitation, visit the OSF HealthCare website or talk to your primary care provider. OSF HealthCare also offers neurological services.

Interview Clips - Charlotte Davis

Interview Clips - Kelly Bogowith

Interview Clips - Ashley Brim

Previous Coverage

OSF Innovation preparing to test concussion diagnosis gaming app

Concussions Hit Student Athletes as Fall Sports Get Underway

Preventing concussion in young athletes 

Concussion: More than Just Getting Your Bell Rung

Myths about concussions increase the risk of harmful effects

Taking a Team Approach to Concussion Rehab

Heading Up Health Study on High School Heads