Gordon Ryan, widely considered the best Brazilian jiu-jitsu player in the world, was recently hospitalized due to medical issues that required surgery, and he’s not sure when exactly he’ll be able to compete again.
According to Rayan, he developed a severe case of strep throat after a trip to Abu Dhabi took him to the hospital for an extended stay. Doctors prescribed several doses of antibiotics to try to clear the infection, but Ryan says his throat continued to swell.
In the end, Ryan revealed that he took various doses of antibiotics for 40 days before the treatment finally relieved the infection, but then had to undergo tonsillectomy.
A quick update to everyone who was asking. “When I got back from my trip to Abu Dhabi I had a severe case of sore throat which ended up in the hospital due to my throat being swollen. Doctors also couldn’t figure out how to treat it as no one ever failed penicillin for a bacterial infection. In all, I took amoxicillin for 7 days and within one day my throat was back to square one. After that, I took penicillin for 10 days and within two days I was in the hospital with a swollen throat. In the hospital, they gave me an injection of penicillin and another 10 days of penicillin, but I failed. Then I switched to 14 days of clindamycin, which worked.
“So I was on 40+ days straight of antibiotics plus a shot of penicillin. During this time I was contagious and everyone was in big camps so I couldn’t even go to training for fear I might get them too. Plus, my ears were aching So severe from my throat that I couldn’t get my heart rate up at all without making them explode and give me a severe headache.”
The health issues from his severe case of sore throat also exacerbated his stomach issues, which started as a fungal growth in his small intestine that he described as “the worst hangover I’ve ever had.”
Apparently, these problems flared up again while Ryan was undergoing treatment for his throat, causing him to miss training and once again cut back on competition.
“I’ve been completely inactive for longer than I’ve ever been since I started training,” Ryan said. “As expected, my stomach relapsed very badly and the nausea and lack of appetite resurfaced so I will need to deal with that, but I am heading into surgery today for a tonsillectomy and to repair a severely deviated septum.
“I just wanted to let everyone know what my competition schedule is like. I hope to be back in the next few months.”
Ryan last competed last December in a match against alternate opponent Nikki Rodriguez at the UFC Fight Pass Invitational in Las Vegas. He was scheduled to face longtime rival Felipe Pena in February but the same health issues prevented Ryan from competing.
Ryan’s myriad of medical issues came on the heels of the 27-year-old wrestler sensation striking a multi-million fight deal to join the FloGrappling Who’s Number One series.
Unfortunately so far, Ryan has not been able to compete there due to medical issues that will sideline him indefinitely.