Three former York College wrestlers have sued the college, claiming they contracted herpes from a teammate with whom they were forced to grapple in practice.
Andrew Bradley of Lewes, Del., and Alexander Binder of Baltimore, who both graduated earlier this year; and James Harris of Cedar Brook, N.J., who expects to graduate in December, filed a civil lawsuit for negligence Nov. 3 in Philadelphia County Court.
They name York College of Pennsylvania; Nate Cooke, the college's head athletic trainer; Sean Sullivan, the college's assistant dean of athletics and recreation; and Thomas Kessler, the head wrestling coach, as defendants.
The three men claim that, in October 2006, one of their teammates developed Herpes Simplex Virus I lesions on his skin and was not allowed to practice for three days. When he returned to practice, Cooke bandaged the wrestler's lesions, according to court documents.
For the next several weeks, other wrestlers developed similar lesions, and all "continued to engage in full-contact practice with bandages over their lesions," according to court documents.
According to 2006 NCAA wrestling rules, wrestlers with herpes infections must be on antiviral medication for at least 120 hours, or five days, before they may practice or compete, and active infections and lesions may not be covered to allow participation.
David A. Avedissian, attorney for the three wrestlers, said the three men face repeated outbreaks of the virus.
"The virus
can be treated, but it doesn't get cured," he said. "The symptoms re-occur. The most serious issue is with Bradley because of the proximity (of the rash) to his left eye. If scar tissue forms, it could lead to blindness."
The college is denying the men's claims.
"We are aware of the allegations, and we believe them to be without foundation," said Alicia Brumbach, assistant director of communications.
Bradley, Binder and Harris are seeking more than $50,000 in damages, a monetary limit that precludes handling the case through arbitration.
ABOUT HERPES
There are two types of herpes: Herpes Simplex Virus 1 and Herpes Simplex Virus 2.
HSV-1 is usually mild, especially when it infects the lips, face or genitals. However, in some cases, type 1 can recur spontaneously in the eye, causing ocular herpes, a potentially serious infection that can lead to blindness.
In rare cases, HSV-1 can spread spontaneously to the brain, causing herpes encephalitis, a dangerous infection that can lead to death. HSV-1 is also the usual cause of herpes whitlow, an infection on the finger, and "wrestler's herpes" (herpes gladiatorum), a herpes infection on the chest or face.
By comparison, HSV-2, the usual cause of genital herpes, is widely believed to be a painful, dangerous infection that affects only people with very active sex lives.
The reality? Some 22 percent of adult Americans from all backgrounds, income levels and ethnic groups have HSV-2.
Like HSV-1, type 2 is usually mild -- so mild that two-thirds of infected people don't even know they have it. Type 2 rarely causes complications or spreads to other parts of the body.
Source: Herpes.com To see more of the York Daily Record, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.ydr.com. Copyright (c) 2008, York Daily Record, Pa. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
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