Stoner's Mystery Illness Diagnosed As "Gastritis And Anemia"

By David Emmett | Tue, 14/07/2009 - 13:22

One of the most hotly debated subjects of the past month has been Casey Stoner's mystery illness. The Australian first showed the symptoms at the Catalunya Grand Prix, where he crossed the line in third position completely drained and without any strength in his body. Despite pronouncing himself recovered, Stoner suffered exactly the same fate at Assen during the Dutch TT, and at Laguna Seca, a less optimistic Stoner slipped off the podium to take 4th place, once again completely drained and vomiting, the physical demands of the tough Laguna Seca track taking its toll on the Ducati rider.

Fortunately for the Australian, the doctors in the US, working with the staff of the Clinica Mobile, believe they have tracked down the cause of Stoner's illness. According to the latest Ducati press release, Stoner has been diagnosed with a case of "slight gastritis and mild anemia" and is currently undergoing treatment to deal with the problem. As both gastritis and anemia have a number of causes, it is hard to pinpoint exactly what caused the disease, but gastrits and anemia are occasionally linked. The gastritis causes the stomach cramps, and anemia is a common cause of fatigue and general weakness, a symptom made worse by exercise. With treatment now underway, recovery should just be a matter of weeks, according to the Ducati press release.

Stoner was just relieved at having some prospect of recovery. "I have been in USA until Saturday to do all the tests. First of all I’d like to thanks all the Doctors involved in this, Dr. Ting and Dr. Tuan in the Fremont Surgery Center, Dr. Macchiagodena, Dr. Catani, Dr. Ceccarelli and of course my physiotherapist Freddy. Hopefully step by step I will feel better with their indications. I still don’t feel like I am 100% but the biggest problem now is the ribs that are very painful after the crash during Qualifying at the US GP. It will be probably another hard week end, but as always, we will do our best to stay as much as possible close to the lead of the Championship," Stoner is quoted as saying in the Ducati press release.

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2009/Stoner+to+battle+on+despite+illness

MotoGP
Ducati
Casey Stoner

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Comments

A note which is worth mentioning, but not reporting is that as an Australian, Casey Stoner will have been brought up on Vegemite. If he'd been brought up in the UK, he would have be brought up on Marmite. Anemia is caused by a lack of vitamin B12, and Vegemite contains no B12, unlike Marmite ...

hahaha

well i am an Aussie and i never even ate Vegemite that much, or Marmite or Vegameatmite or whatever it's called. :P

maybe he's just to go relax and unwind a bit... maybe it would do him to do go spend some time in Italy cruising around with Rossi on his new yacht... then again maybe it wouldn't be so relaxing for him.. :P

100% with you on that one David. As anyone knows Marmite is the real stuff and Vegemite is a pale imitation palmed off on the unsuspecting West Islanders. Poor little Casey he didn't have a chance. btw, I'm talking about real Kiwi Marmite, not the Pommy stuff......

*giggle*
This might go down in history as the big Marmite war... ;)

But back to the topic, I'm glad Stoner finally got a diagnosis and can be treated, hopefully this will see him back to full fitness soon, making the championship more exciting again. There's also hoping that this might end all the uncalled-for Stoner bashing of late...

because both conditions are treatable and in time for casey to become challenging again this season.

i do not want to take part in the vegemite/marmite war, but it seems silly to think that casey, having raced from a young age, wouldn't have trained with someone who supplied the boy with a proper diet.

it's not like he was raised in the 70s on potatoes and vodka....

~j

p.s. i'm also relieved it's not a career ending problem such as criville's which i've chalked up to stress related issues

Marmite is sold as 'Our Mate' in Australia due to some licensing laws, but as a pom, I can tell you that Marmite is so much better than the salty crap that is Vegemite.

I am sceptical about Stoner's illness though. Surely a top flight sportsman, working with a team renowned for it's commitment to success would have a dietician and personal doctor? Anaemia isn't difficult to diagnose and an iron deficiency would be the simplest to fix and resolve.

PM might still be onto something. You gotta admit, he's a real stress ball and stress plays havoc with your body and manifests itself in many different ways.

@cejay

I have been truly enlightened - never having heard mention of 'Our Mate', wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marmite) came to the rescue. It appears that the Marmite we know and loathe in Australia is actually the NZ version, whilst 'Our Mate' is the UK variant.

I do hope Stoner's diagnosis is correct, though as others have alluded, I find it strange that it has taken so long to identify - time will tell I guess.

OK enough of that......I think I hear a vegemite and cheese sandwich calling me.......

Why does everyone seem to believe that Stoner (and all MotoGP riders) are followed around by teams of doctors, trainer, specialist and nannies?

Has there ever been a reported sighting of any of this actually happening or is it just the collective imagination?

Who needs to be followed around by doctors, trainers, specialists and nannies when they paid millions each year to be the best of the best? Stoner has access to teh Clinica Mobile as well as his own personal trainer (it was Anthony Peden).

But then how good can the access to the Clinica Mobile be if they couldnt diagnose anemia

Good question, I assumed (incorrectly perhaps?) that when a team has a budget of 10's of millions, that they back that up with resources to ensure that one of the key components of their package is fit and healthy. If not, I sense an opportunity for someone!

I hope he gets well, I'd prefer a rider to be fit and healthy and not continue to seriously risk their health. It must be dangerous for him and others to be so debilitated mid way through a race, though probably not as bad as someone loaded with pain killers.

Interesting, Motogp and any race authorised under the FIM has to adhere to thw WADA doping regulation which prohibit a wide range of drugs, many of which would have neglible impact on a riders capability, yet a rider with high levels of pain killers (which by their nature impact on the riders brain) is permitted and almost encouraged to ride.

at laguna, casey was out riding a bicycle with his trainer on thursday before (and during) the "specialized" event.

not sure about nannies but i guarantee you he trains at 100% and does not mess around with his diet.

the only "old school" guy left in the paddock is colin "i can drink 100 beers and nothin'" edwards and when we interviewed him on MotoGPod a few years ago he was saying he had to start going to a trainer and working out finally (tennis is his game) because the rest of the field has become so insanely fit.

I am glad that this issue has been diagnosed, but I am wondering why it never was an issue in the past. Granted, I am not in the medical profession and do not know a lot about the conditions, but I am surprised that these issues have not happened to Stoner before this.

In my local (CA Bay Area) Safeway, Marmite is stocked with the spices.... and is $5 for the 125g bottle!

How on earth these people won so many wars when they can't even smear their toast with something decent is beyond me.

As for Casey, I don't believe for a second it's a diet issue. This is a guy who said in an interview that one thing he does on race day is check to make sure his pee is clear... It would follow that he's careful about what he eats and drinks.