Player’s Head Injury Was 2nd, Doctor Says

The injury Friday night that left Vu Dang in critical condition was the second recent head injury suffered by the Escondido High football player.

Dang’s condition remained critical but stable Sunday as friends and family continued their vigil at Palomar Medical Center.

Dang, 17, has responded to various forms of stimulation. He has recognized family members, squeezed his mother’s hand and wiggled his toes.

Dr. Imad Shahhal, the neurologist who performed the three-hour brain surgery late Friday night, said he was pleased with Dang’s progress during what he called a four-day critical period.

Shahhal removed a subdural hematoma--a blood clot between the brain and skull--and discovered that Dang had suffered a previous head injury, probably within three weeks.

Escondido football Coach Bruce Ward could not recall any previous injury without consulting team injury reports--which were unavailable--athletic trainer Steve Jessop was out of town because of a death in the family.

Rick Lothspeich, Dang’s best friend, recalled that the previous week against Temecula Valley, Dang had been shaken up on a play near the end of the game, which he did not re-enter. Dang also was hit and suffered a cut lip in a game Oct. 11, he said.

“He had even more than an actual concussion,” Shahhal said of the previous injury. “He had bleeding before and it re-bled.”

Shahhal found a membrane--made up of fragile vessels--that had formed over the previous bleeding to form a clot. He theorized that the hit in Friday’s game compounded that injury.

The doctor was unsure whether Dang should have been playing in the game.

“I don’t know how you can tell,” Shahhal said. “We know now in hindsight, but I don’t know how you could tell before. If he was doing OK, how could anybody tell? Sometimes you can have bleeding and be totally normal if the bleeding is not severe. At impact, they might complain, but if the body heals it and they don’t complain, nobody ever knows it.”

“I think it’s probably just a combination of events--he was unlucky: He had another injury before that was in the process of healing and then he had a second injury too close to the first one.

“Again, that is a theory. That’s probably the best theory we have.”

Despite the progress, Shahhal said Dang still is not out of the woods. There remains a chance of more hemorrhaging, brain swelling, stroke or pneumonia.

“They key is how he’s doing,” Shahhal said. “If he keeps doing better, the chances of problems stop. Every day behind us is a day in our favor.”

Dang, a 5-foot-7, 160-pound wide receiver, was injured while being tackled during Escondido’s 14-0 victory over San Marcos. He was undergoing surgery within the hour.

Shirley Rehkopf, Escondido High principal, was among those who took part in the vigil Sunday.

A cellular telephone that San Marcos athletic trainer Curt Caspersen had on hand to call 911 is credited with helping save his life. Rehkopf talked Sunday morning to school district superintendent Dr. Jane Gawronski and was assured Escondido, San Pasqual and Orange Glen high schools would soon receive cellular phones.

Rehkopf also met Sunday with Ward, who is also the school’s athletic director, and held preliminary discussions on establishing a fund to offset the family’s medical expenses.

Rehkopf also suggested donations to the San Diego Blood Bank or the Community Blood Bank near the hospital in Dang’s name. Both are in Escondido.