If you or someone you love follows NASCAR, you’ve probably been following the weirdness around Kyle Busch and his passing last week. Busch, 41, was a legendary NASCAR driver, well-liked and well-sponsored. He passed away last Thursday. While his family said he had been sick recently, he was out and about and training up to one day before his death. Conspiracies began popping up quickly about what was ailing Busch and what was really going on. The Busch family either asked for an autopsy or some kind of postmortem investigation, and by Saturday, the family released the information about how a 41-year-old man in good health could collapse on Wednesday and die on Thursday. He died from severe pneumonia and sepsis.
NASCAR driver Kyle Busch died from severe pneumonia that progressed into sepsis, according to a statement provided by the Busch family.
Dakota Hunter, vice president of Kyle Busch Companies, said in a news release that the family received the medical evaluation Saturday.
“The medical evaluation provided to the Busch Family concluded that severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, resulting in rapid and overwhelming associated complications,” the Busch family statement read. “The Family asks for continued understanding and privacy during this difficult time.”
Busch, a two-time NASCAR champion, died at 41 on Thursday, a day after passing out in a Chevrolet simulator. His family said earlier that he had been hospitalized with a “severe illness” days before he was to compete in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Busch was testing in the racing simulator in Concord, North Carolina, on Wednesday when he became unresponsive and was transported to a hospital in Charlotte, several people familiar with the situation told The Associated Press. Busch experienced shortness of breath, felt he was overheating and was coughing up blood the day before his death, according to a 911 call obtained Friday by ABC.
During the emergency call placed late Wednesday afternoon, an unidentified caller calmly told the dispatch: “I’ve got an individual that’s [got] shortness of breath, very hot, thinks he’s going to pass out and is producing a little bit of blood, coughing up some blood.”
The caller said Busch was lying on the bathroom floor inside the complex and told dispatch “he is awake,” according to audio provided by the Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office. The man gave directions on where emergency responders should go and asked that they turn off any sirens upon arrival.
Sepsis is considered a life-threatening medical emergency that occurs when the body has an extreme, overactive response to an infection, causing the immune system to damage its own tissues and organs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Typically the immune system releases chemicals to fight off pathogens such as bacteria, viruses or fungi, but with sepsis the response goes into overdrive. The results can cause widespread inflammation, form microscopic blood clots and make blood vessels leak.
Busch was thought to have had a sinus cold while racing at Watkins Glen on May 10 and radioed his team saying he needed a “shot” from a doctor after the race. However, he bounced back to win the Trucks Series race at Dover last weekend and finished 17th in the All-Star Race on Sunday.
This is really horrible, and a reminder that pneumonia is no joke. It sounds like as soon as he started coughing up blood, he was immediately hospitalized. But what were the signs before then? How much of this was a guy who just thought he was toughing out a cold or sinus infection? I imagine the shot was either vitamins or some kind of steroid? Anyway, his poor family. He had a wife and two kids, a boy and a girl. Devastating.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Instagram.
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- -Las Vegas, NV -20181129 2018 NASCAR Awards. -PICTURED: Kyle Busch -PHOTO by: startraksphoto.com Disclaimer: This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact Startraks Photo for licensing fee and rights information at sales@startraksphoto.com or call +1 212 414 9464 This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. Startraks Photo reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded For images containing underage children: Be advised that some Countries may have restricted privacy laws against publishing images of underage children. Inform yourself! Underage children may need to be removed or have their face pixelated before publishing Featuring: Kyle Busch Where: Las Vegas, Nevada, United States When: 29 Nov 2018 Credit: startraksphoto.com
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- , Nashville, TN – 20191205 2019 NASCAR Champions Week Awards. -PICTURED: Kyle Busch, Samantha Busch and Son Brexton -PHOTO by: SOL TUCKER/INSTARimages.com This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact Instar Images LLC for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207 This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. Instar Images LLC reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded Featuring: Kyle Busch, Samantha Busch and Son Brexton Where: Nashville, Tennessee, United States When: 05 Dec 2019 Credit: SOL TUCKER/INSTARimages.com
Very sad for the whole family. RIP.
This happened to my aunt many years ago—everything goes downhill very quickly—you don’t realize how sick you are until it’s too late.
Everyone please scroll way down and read my comment and plea to you all.
This is so sad and probably 💯 avoidable with proper medical care and treatment. Yes, sepsis can come on very fast but it sounds like the underlying illness was pneumonia which could have been treated. Apparently, the “doctor” that he requested was a physician assistant, not an MD. There are so many unanswered questions here such as why was he prescribing his own treatment, “a shot”, two weeks before his death. We’ll only get answers if a wrongful death suit is filed. Anyone who has family members on this circuit should be demanding answers.
💯💯💯 about 10 or 12 days before he died a reporter queried him about his bad cough and whether or not it was getting any better and he sort of shrugged it off.. This guy had been sick for quite a while before sepsis set in.
Asking for a shot during the race sure sounds like something was wrong for weeks. These guys and their crews travel from race to race and I wonder if they have access to proper health care. This sounds like treating the symptoms and never bothering to diagnose the illness and treat that. And I know that the drivers would resist leaving the circuit to go to the hospital, but NASCAR has some explaining to do about how this man could be so sick for so long and not have decent medical care.
His widow and two young kids were at the race the yesterday while they did a tribute and played Amazing Grace on bagpipes. It was heartbreaking watching them. They are so young.
Someone I know had been sick for a few days, after high fever bursts decided to go to the hospital and she was carted straight into the operating theatre as the inflammation numbers were dangerously high. It was sepsis and thank god they went that night & that doctors were able to help
I’ve been through this myself, and it’s terrifying. I was tired and had a bit of a cough for about a week, but I’m always catching bronchitis and other relatively minor illnesses (I’m immunocompromised), so I didn’t think much of it. Then one day I woke up after a nap and it suddenly felt like something much worse, though I still didn’t think it was bad enough to go to the hospital. Thankfully, at the time I still lived with my dad and stepmom, an ER doctor, and she insisted. I ended up in the ICU for a week, and another 2 weeks in a regular room (and the meds caused kidney failure, so I also had to have dialysis for a couple months afterwards).
Pneumonia is not to be f–ked with, and any respiratory illness is no time to try and be stoic. Looking at you, MEN! At the very least, you need to rest, and not attempt athletic feats (and driving any race car is much more physically demanding than many think). This is so tragic, and likely could’ve been prevented by just listening to his body. God, his poor wife and kids.
My mom who was 86 at the time and very aware of being right on top of anything that came up with her health ended up being in septic shock which is pretty much imminent death.
When we got to the ER she was quickly tested and it was determined she had a uti. She said because she has them so frequently she knows the symptoms and signs and she had none of them.
Ultimately she was put in the ICU section of the ER. They injected the medication right into her carotid artery in her neck and she lived. She was at the point where if that medication didn’t work then she would have died.
She has so many other things wrong with her they were astounded that she had no lasting internal organ damage or anything.
But it does turn on a dime. When you go septic it’s turns on dime that’s all I can say
My sister nearly died from pneumonia that turned to sepsis. She was intubated for close to two weeks and it was a a month before she was discharged to rehab. She required dialysis because her kidneys stopped working. It was a good couple of years for her to recover.
I feel bad for the family. It happens so suddenly that it is difficult to process it.
It’s extremely sad, my jaw was literally dropped when I saw he’d passed. Every fb post about it has people assuming he was vaccinated and died of that, and an equal number of folks defending him that he’d never. His mom could barely walk at the event yesterday, I was hoping she was already frail, but it appears to be grief. His poor wife and kids. He annoyed me when he was younger, but he had matured in the past few years.
Something similar happened to me in 2024. I had an allergic reaction to an antibiotic that turned into pneumonia. Fortunately, I had a doctor’s appointment and the doctor told me to get to the ER. Never got to sepsis but it was close and I recovered after two weeks in the hospital on oxygen and three weeks in rehab. Scary how fast everything happened and how I wasn’t aware of how seriously ill I was.
Didn’t something like this happen to Jim Henson?
Yes. Jim Henson died after what was termed an “overwhelming infection.”
Mayp, true about Jim Henson. BUT he was misdiagnosed by a doctor while he was traveling. Doctor/hospital “misadventures” are the 3rd cause of death in the U.S., after cancer and heart attacks respectively. No, the doctors and their medical union do not want you to know that. I didn’t know that either. Then my husband was misdiagnosed and he died because of it. That will haunt me for the rest of my life.
Absolutely. I had had a bad cough and breathing problems for a while once and my then doctor kept telling me it was just bronchitis, I didn’t need antibiotics and an inhaler would get me better. For about two weeks I relied on my presumption of his competency. That was a mistake. I switched doctors and they were shocked that I had just seen this doctor the week before and he continued to say it was bronchitis, as I very clearly had pneumonia. They flat out said that my prior doctor should have known that I had pneumonia.
Unfortunately, you need to be your own medical advocate (and for other people you care about). Trust your instincts, and switch doctors if you need to. And, never hesitate to go into urgent care or the ER when feeling unwell for a period of time, especially with an unusual prolonged cough.
Finally, a reminder that some people are less able to fight off infections and they should act more quickly to guard their health. If you are elderly,if one is Young, immunocompromised, etc, you need to be very vigilant about infections. I think everyone should have their immunoglobulin levels tested because if they are deficient in IGA they are less able to fight lung and sinus infections. When Henson died I wondered if he was immunoglobulin deficient.
PLEASE READ THIS CAUTIONARY TALE: I had this several years ago as well. Luckily mine was caught early enough that I avoided intubation, but only because my spouse is an MD who demanded we go to the hospital. I kept saying I didn’t want to go, I’d be ok, I wasn’t that sick, I didn’t feel I could get up and go anywhere. He demanded and I think half carried me to the car as he was calling them saying we were coming (it’s where he works). I recall being rolled in on a stretcher and someone trying to talk to me and at that point I couldn’t even respond. There was about a 15 minute (if) span between me talking to my husband at home and my being unable to respond to anyone. Two days before I had been attending my child’s play at school, doing school drop off/pickups…normal parent of young kids stuff. I didn’t feel great, horribly tired, felt like I had a really bad cold and cough, and I just pushed through as we all tend to do. I didn’t just have a bad cough and cold, I had double pneumonia and sepsis. I had never been in the hospital for anything other than childbirth, never had an allergy or serious illness, was robust and perfectly healthy otherwise—and whammo.
This illness is *not* to be ignored. If you have a cough and cold that persists, go to get medical help. It’s so easy to say oh it’s nothing, it’ll resolve on its own, I’m in great health other than this…and not want to go for a check (particularly with the US healthcare system being what it is). It’s easy to think, I don’t want to waste time and money on what’s going to end up being nothing that can be helped…and not want to seem silly for seeking help for a routine thing. DO IT ANYWAY. Do it for the people who love you. It may just be a routine cough and cold. But you may have pneumonia (and not even know it) and that can trigger sepsis. You can go from feeling poorly to a complete crash within hours. (And sepsis isn’t just from pneumonia … it can be brought on by many infections, including skin, tooth, uti, and so on.) If this happens to you or anyone you know, please **insist** that they go for a medical check. If it’s routine, you may feel silly or like you wasted time, but instead just be thrilled that it’ll resolve on its own, and be proud of yourself for doing the right thing.
💯, @felicity, and to:: “I’m in great health other than this….”. It is often those otherwise very healthy people, with robust immune systems, who’s system goes into overdrive leading to sepsis.
“Sepsis is a medical emergency that occurs when the body’s immune system overreacts to an infection, triggering widespread inflammation.”
100%! Ten years ago I ignored a rampant UTI (as a nurse, I figured I’d just drink a lot of cranberry juice, Tylenol, and take it easy….I know, I know…..). Finally one night I stood up and fell right back down so I called my mom to take me to urgent care (which was closed so we had to go to the ER). They found a large mass blocking my left ureter and I was septic. ICU and CT scans later started my journey with bladder cancer. I was 36, previously in good health, maybe more than a bit pudgy, but active, employed, and a mom. It was scary for everyone.
Then there was my coworker K, also a nurse. He ignored his UTI until he was in septic shock, intubated, ICU…and he didn’t make it. He was in his mid 40s.
Don’t put it off. If you don’t feel “right,” get it checked out. I know here in the US the health care is a mess and insurance is even worse….but a doctor visit is a helluva lot cheaper than an ICU stay. Or a funeral.
A friend of mine in college thought she had a bad cold, until one day she realized she couldn’t walk. Her roommate called 911 and she was taken to the hospital in a stretcher. She was in a coma for a week or so, last rites were given, they thought she wasn’t going to make it, but she did. Needless to say, it was very scary
It’s also important to have someone advocating for you. My cousin was there to drive me to the emergency room and talk to my doctors. They knew someone was out there watching out for me. I could have fallen through the cracks. I also had a nurse that was urging steroid treatment when the doctors wanted to do more tests. I truly believe she saved my life.
I had bacterial pneumonia over the holidays…. Alone and overseas… it was rough and I truly never felt so bad… headache that was beyond incredible (dr. Low oxygen levels, much like altitude sickness) raging fever, could hardly catch my breath to speak, oh and then I started to hallucinate… finally went to hospital and left after 24-hours, because I was better off at home… I was on so many medications plus a nebulizer and got a shot in my ass every night for a week- that ironically, cleared up my psoriasis… but yeah I thought, “this is how people die..” took a good month to feel like myself … pneumonia is no joke…