Bronny James has a congenital heart defect that led to his cardiac arrest, a spokesman says
from: BETH HARRIS, Associated Press
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LOS ANGELES (AP) – Bronny James suffered cardiac arrest from a congenital heart defect during basketball practice at the University of Southern California last month, according to a family spokeswoman.
The 18-year-old son of Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James fell ill on July 24. He was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and later evaluated by doctors at the Mayo Clinic and Atlantic Health-Morristown Medical Center in New Jersey.
A statement released Friday by Stephanie Rosa of the LeBron James Family Foundation said the probable cause of James’ sudden cardiac arrest has been identified.
“It is an anatomically and functionally significant congenital heart defect that can and is treatable,” the statement said. “We are very confident that Bronny will make a full recovery and return to basketball in the near future.”
The younger James was released from Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles three days after the incident at USC’s Galen Center. The following evening he dined with his family in Santa Monica.
Bronny, whose full name is LeBron James Jr., signed to USC in May after the 1.9-meter guard from Sierra Canyon School in nearby Chatsworth became one of the brightest prospects in the country.
James did not join the Trojans on their European tour this month.
Bronny James became the second high-profile USC basketball recruit to suffer cardiac arrest in the last year. Vincent Iwuchuwku also suffered a stroke during training last July, but the 2.15-metre center returned six months later, eventually appearing as a freshman in 14 games for the Trojans.
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