HUP helps kick off soccer team

The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania has played a major role in helping the city's new professional indoor soccer team, the Philadelphia KIXX, get the ball rolling for its inaugural season. Alexander Brucker, a physician based at HUP's Scheie Eye Institute and an Opthamology professor in the Medical School, has become the team opthamologist. He, along with the team's trainers and orthopedic surgeon, will be responsible for looking out for the health of KIXX players. "If they get injured, we're there to help them," Brucker said. Team officials asked Brucker to take the post because of his interest in retinal diseases and the trauma that occurs any time a person is hit in the eye. Brucker, who attends most of the team's games, said he has not had to treat any major eye injuries since the team began play in the fall. "It's been a good year so far," he said. "Soccer is not meant to be a contact sport. Injuries don't happen often." Brucker said eye injuries among players most often occur when they are poked in the eye or scraped by a fingernail -- which can result in corneal abrasions. He said players are not likely to be injured by the ball due to its large size and added that facial bone structure prevents the eye from being punctured by the ball. "If you get hit with a soccer ball it's not so bad, if you get hit by a softball it's not so bad, but, if you get hit by a baseball it's bad and a golf ball -- it's a disaster," Brucker said. Brucker will also administer vision screenings to team members later this year. Caring for the eyesight of professional athletes is not a new responsibility for Brucker, who has also assisted members of the Phillies and the 76ers, as well as professional boxers. "In playing any sport, athletes must be concerned about eye injuries," Brucker said. "You can't take eyesight for granted." He said being part of the team has been "lots of fun," and added that "the people are very nice." The KIXX play Saturdays from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the new CoreStates Spectrum. Their 40-game season lasts until March, and tickets to individual games cost between $7 and $19. "[Owner] Ed Tepper has brought the KIXX to Philadelphia in a big way," Brucker said. "Soccer is a sport that's here -- it's a sport of the future."