High school linebacker died due to cardiac arrest from head injury, coroner says
A coroner has concluded that Dylan Thomas, a Georgia high school linebacker, died late last month due to cardiac arrest caused by a head injury, CBS affiliate WMAZ reports.
Coroner Terrell Moody's report said Thomas was pronounced dead at a hospital on September 30 — two days after he was injured in a Friday night Pike County High School football game. During the game, Thomas was taken to a sideline after an official signaled a player was injured. Thomas told trainers he lost feeling in his left leg.
That night, he was airlifted to a hospital in Atlanta with a head injury and had multiple surgeries and tests over the next 40-45 hours.
Moody's report said the fatal injury was ultimately an "anomaly" that required "the perfect amount of pressure on the perfect spot at the perfect angle." He said Thomas had no pre-existing conditions that would have made him more susceptible.
Moody concluded that no additional treatments or preventative measures could have saved Thomas' life.