Physicians caring for Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin said Thursday that he’s improved dramatically in the last 24 hours, although he remains critically ill.
In an update relayed via the Buffalo Bills, doctors at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center said the 24-year-old “has shown remarkable improvement over the past 24 hours” and “has demonstrated that he appears to be neurologically intact.”
The team added that Hamlin’s “lungs continue to heal and he is making steady progress.”
Dr. Timothy Pritts of UC Health, one of the physicians overseeing Hamlin’s care, added at a press conference Thursday afternoon that Hamlin has no cardiac dysfunction, is beginning to move his hands and feet, and has been communicating by writing.
After Hamlin woke up Wednesday night, he asked doctors who won the game, Pritts said.
Hamlin has been in critical condition since Monday evening, when he collapsed and went into cardiac arrest during the first quarter of the Bills game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
First responders restored the player’s heartbeat with a defibrillator on the field and performed CPR until an ambulance transported him to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
Hamlin opened his eyes Wednesday night for the first time and “has been gripping the hands of those close to him” in the hospital, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Bills cornerback Kaiir Elam said Thursday that Hamlin is “awake and showing more signs of improvement.”