Following a game against the Kansas City Chiefs last November, Denver Broncos safety Rahim Moore was diagnosed with acute compartment syndrome in his left leg. Moore had pulled himself from the game after his leg felt strange, and an X-ray later put his mind at ease. Little did he know, he was in danger of losing his leg.
“I got an X-ray, and they told me there was no broken bone, no fracture, and I was like, ‘Cool. OK — what else in the world can it be?’” Moore told Joan Niesen of The Monday Morning Quarterback.
Moore said the pain went away shortly after the game, but he suddenly lost feeling in his leg as he was about to turn in for the night.
“All of a sudden, my leg just got weak,” Moore explained. “I felt like I had about 30 Band-Aids on my knee, and there was no feeling down my leg. I started to tear up, and I was like, What’s going on?”
Moore went to the hospital, where doctors inserted a needle into his leg and determined he had acute compartment syndrome. The condition causes pressure to constantly build up within a compartment of muscle, nerves and veins in a certain area of the body and is incredibly dangerous. Had Moore waited until the following day to have his leg examined, doctors say they likely would have had to amputate.
“I didn’t know if I would ever walk again,” he said. “I didn’t know if I would ever be the Rahim that I know I can be, and also be able to have the footwork and be swift and things like that. The Lord definitely restored me.”
Not only was Moore in danger of never being able to play football again, but his life could have been turned completely upside-down. Fortunately, the condition has been cleared and Moore is free to continue his NFL career. He was wise to have sought help when he did.
