NJ teen went into cardiac arrest during a basketball game. Quick thinking helped save his life
A 16-year-old New Jersey high school basketball player is recovering after suffering a sudden cardiac arrest during a game last week, surviving because of the fast response by an athletic trainer and doctors in the crowd.
Tahsir Carter, a junior at Teaneck High School, collapsed on the court while playing in a varsity game at Northern Highlands Regional High School in Allendale on Jan. 27. The game had been paused for another injury when Carter went to get water and suddenly fell to the floor.
“I heard someone say ‘Man down, need an AED’, so I ran over there,” said Peter Koeniges, the athletic trainer at Northern Highlands. “Two of the doctors from the stands had already gotten to him.”
Koeniges said twice-yearly emergency drills helped prepare him for the moment. He used an AED he carries to shock Carter’s heart back into rhythm and then performed CPR until help arrived.
Carter was first rushed to Hackensack Hospital and then transferred to Mount Sinai, where doctors implanted a small defibrillator Thursday. Physicians believe he has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, sometimes referred to as “athlete’s heart.” He had no prior symptoms or warning signs.
Doctors later implanted a defibrillator to prevent future episodes, and he is now recovering at home.
“I’m glad to be here, glad I had the support of people to help me, it’s still shocking though,” Carter said.
Just days later, Carter is walking with his mother, a far cry from the heart surgery the high school junior had just four days earlier.
“It’s like divine intervention, you couldn’t have asked for a better crew in an emergency situation,” said his mother, Lattice Chess-Story.
She credits the rapid response with saving her son’s life.
“The way they acted so fast is the reason Tahsir is still here,” she said. “He wasn’t out for long, he wasn’t not breathing for that long, and that makes all the difference when you revive a person.”
Carter said he remains grateful to Koeniges and the two doctors who rushed from the stands to help.
“I’m very grateful he was there and that he reacted quickly so I’m still here,” Carter said. “I plan on seeing him soon and I thank him a lot.”
Koeniges said preparation made the difference.
“Having the proper equipment and the proper training, everything we did ahead of time is what made the positive outcome for this young man,” he said. “Rehearsing it as often as you can really helps, we didn’t do anything outside of what we train for, which made us comfortable.”
Carter is expected to return to school in Teaneck as early as the second week of February. After everything he has been through, he says he is now considering a future career in sports medicine or athletic training.
