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Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh had a scary moment on Sunday when he was forced to leave the sidelines against the Denver Broncos due to what was originally deemed an illness.
That led to light-hearted speculation, especially after he returned to the sidelines, that Harbaugh just needed to use the restroom.
But the first-year head coach revealed afterward that he suffers from a heart arrhythmia and that he suffered an atrial flutter during the game.
HC Jim Harbaugh says he had an "atrial flutter" episode today and that his heart got back into normal rhythm after he walked off the field.
He jokes: "I am medically qualified to talk about it."
"2-0 with arrythmias."-he says he had another one during a MNF game in SF. pic.twitter.com/qb0NzvXPbg
— Alex Insdorf (@alexinsdorf99) October 13, 2024
The Mayo Clinic defines an atrial flutter as “a type of heart rhythm disorder, called an arrhythmia. It is similar to atrial fibrillation (AFib). But in atrial flutter the heart rhythm is more organized and less chaotic than in AFib. A person can have both atrial flutter and AFib.
“Atrial flutter may not cause symptoms. But some people may have a pounding, rapid heartbeat and chest pain. Fainting or almost fainting also may happen. Treatment for atrial flutter may include medicines and a heart procedure.”
Harbaugh met with a cardiologist on Monday who confirmed the diagnosis. He also wore a heart monitor during his weekly press conference and revealed that he plans to keep coaching while undergoing treatment for the condition.
“That’s the issue I’ve had: It spikes way up for a certain amount of time and then goes too low,” Harbaugh said according to Daniel Popper of The Athletic. “So there’s medicine now that it’ll keep right in the sweet spot.”
Harbaugh also told reporters that he suffered similar incidents twice before. Once as a player for the Indianapolis Colts in 1999 then again in 2012 as the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.
After each incident, he underwent an ablation procedure do destroy the tissue causing the arrhythmia.
“I now have a real good understanding of just what to do, how it needs to be treated with medicine or ablation or both,” Harbaugh said Monday. “Pretty confident on this one that I know what it is and how to deal with it. But as always, we’ll trust the doctors and they’ll tell me what to do.”
Could the issue cause Harbaugh to step away from coaching entirely? Don’t count on it.
“They know how deeply committed I am,” Harbaugh said of discussions with his family. “It would take my heart stopping for me not to be out there on the sideline.”