Before the Packers’ matchup with the Chicago Bears two weeks ago, left tackle David Bakhtiari had an appendectomy. He’s not expected to play Monday night against the Los Angeles Rams. At the moment, it is uncertain when Bakhtiari will return. However, missing a few weeks is a small price to pay for something that could have been much worse.
David Bakhtiari Opens Up About Appendectomy
The Thursday before the Packers played the Bears, David Bakhitari was experiencing pain from what he believed was an abdominal strain. “I talked to my wife about it, and I was like, ‘If I feel the same pain, I’ll bring it up to the doctors tomorrow,” Bakhtiari said on Friday.
Bakhtiari mentioned the pain to the Packers team physician. He was given a CT scan and was eventually told by his doctor that he had a case of appendicitis. Based on scans, his doctor believed it was days away from bursting, so Bakhitari had surgery immediately.
“When I woke up, she’s like, ‘We had to do the big surgery because it was leaking,’” Bakhtiari said. “She thought I was a week from the CT, but she’s like, ‘If it didn’t burst Saturday, you would’ve burst it Sunday.’”
If Bakhitiari chose not to get his pain checked out, it would have burst during the Bears game. “The scary part for me that people don’t understand is when we have adrenaline going, so much stuff gets covered up,” he said. “I would probably bet I wouldn’t even know I would’ve burst it until postgame. I would’ve thought I got hit in the guts and I would have been like, ‘Suck it up. Let’s finish out the game and then let’s figure it out.’”
A recent study from 2015 reported about 11.6 million cases of appendicitis, which resulted in about 50,100 deaths. So, missing a few games is much better than the permanent alternative.
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