Cardiac Surgery for USIU Player : Cem Er’s Heart Repaired After Freak Accident Suffered in Soccer Match

A United States International University soccer player who was involved in a freak accident in a match was in stable condition Thursday night after open heart surgery was performed at Sharp Memorial Hospital.

Cem Er, 20, from Istanbul, Turkey, suffered a small tear to his heart after colliding with a Cal State Los Angeles player Wednesday at San Diego.

The bizarre accident occurred in the final minutes of a double-overtime period. Er and CSLA goalkeeper David Jacques both went after a high bouncing ball. Er, a forward, headed the ball into the goal but also collided with the bigger Jacques.

Barry Knotts, the attending physician at Sharp Memorial Hospital said the injury is rare.

“It’s very unusual to rupture a heart, to tear a heart, from a blunt injury,” Knotts said. “It’s much more common to occur from a knife or gunshot wound.

“We have had some experience with that type of injury here at Sharp because of blunt injuries (three in the past two years), but the others were because of motor vehicle accidents. I’ve never heard of this in anything less than an auto accident or a fall from a very high place.”

CSLA Coach Berhane Andeberhan said that Jacques may have accidently struck Er in the sternum with his knee as both players went for the ball.

“They were running at full speed when they collided,” Andeberhan said. “It wasn’t clear where (Jacques) hit him, not even the players nearby knew how they collided. They were flying in one of those desperate moves.”

Jacques, who is 6-feet 1-inch, 190 pounds, was not injured in the collision, according to Andeberhan. Er is 5-9, 155 pounds.

USIU Coach Mike Hovenic said Er’s family in Istanbul was notified Wednesday evening of the accident through an interpreter. He added that Er’s family will remain in Turkey unless there are complications.

USIU was leading, 2-1, in the double-overtime period, when Er, a sophomore, and Jacques collided. Er’s goal put USIU ahead, 3-1. Because of Er’s injury, the game was ended with five minutes remaining and USIU was credited with the victory.

“Basically in soccer, it’s a physical game,” Hovenic said. “Guys get knocked down and might be on the ground, but when Cem (pronounced Jim) didn’t get up right away, we knew something was wrong.”

Er was administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the field by the team’s trainer and was revived as paramedics arrived. Er was taken to Sharp where he was wheeled into the operating room 20 minutes after arrival, Knotts said.

During 2 1/2 hours of surgery, doctors repaired the tear in Er’s left atrium, one of the heart’s chambers.

Knotts said Er is healing quickly and is expected to be moved out of intensive care today.

Thursday was Er’s fifth game of the season. Only two games remain. He joined the team late after recently transferring from USIU’s sister campus in London, where he was a standout on the school’s club team. Er had a problem verifying his class standing, Blair Swain, a USIU spokesperson, said.

Some USIU players studying in London for a semester last year played on the London club team and recognized that Er was a talented player, Hovenic said.

“He is a very likable guy and an outstanding player,” Hovenic said. “This is a big loss for us. We were counting on Cem to be with us to finish the season. With his recent goal production (five goals in five games) he is really coming into his own.”