Panthers TE Hayden Hurst diagnosed with Post Traumatic Amnesia, return to football unclear
Carolina Panthers (1-11) tight end Hayden Hurst has been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Amnesia by an independent neurologist as a result of a hit he took in the 16-13 Week 10 defeat to the Chicago Bears (4-8).
His father, Jerry, announced his diagnosis on X Wednesday.
“@haydenrhurst has been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Amnesia by an independent neurologist as a result of the hit he took in Chicago November 9. Slow recovery, don’t know when he’ll be back. Prayers appreciated!” he wrote.
Panthers TE Hayden Hurst diagnosed with scary head injury
According to Headway, post-traumatic amnesia, or PTA, “is the time after a period of unconsciousness when the injured person is conscious and awake, but is behaving or talking in a bizarre or uncharacteristic manner.”
“The person has no continuous memory of day-to-day events, and recent events may be equally affected, so that they are unable to remember what happened a few hours or even a few minutes ago. To complicate the issue, PTA can sometimes occur without the person having been unconscious beforehand.”
Hurst, 30, has appeared in nine games (eight starts) in his first season with the Panthers. He’s hauled in 18 receptions for 184 yards and a touchdown. Hurst hasn’t appeared in a game since suffering the injury. He returned to practice Wednesday and was listed as a limited participant. He remains, however, in concussion protocol.
The 2018 first-round pick spent the first two years of his career with the Baltimore Ravens (9-3). He spent the next two with the Atlanta Falcons (6-6) and one with the Cincinnati Bengals (6-6). He signed a three-year deal with the Panthers this offseason worth $21.75 million with $13 million guaranteed. In 79 games (39 starts), he’s registered 195 catches for 1,902 yards and 15 scores.