Back to the Pittsburgh Steelers Newsfeed

Tomlin Won’t Say If Any Players Carry Sickle Cell Trait Ahead Of High Attitude Game

The Pittsburgh Steelers will play the Denver Broncos in Week 12 and on the road this coming Sunday and that means some adjustments to playing in high altitude might need to be made. Physical exertion in high altitude settings, in case you forgot, can result in splenic infarction occurring in athletes who possess a sickle cell trait. Splenic infarction is tissue death in the spleen caused by a lack of oxygen at altitudes higher than 5,000 feet.

The Steelers already unfortunately have had a bad first-hand experience when it comes to players with the sickle cell trait having bad reactions to playing in the high attitude of Denver.