Marine Corps Private Claims He Was Forced to Join Training Despite Muscle Necrosis Disease

A private serving in the Marine Corps in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, has claimed that he was forced to participate in training even after contracting a disease that causes muscle cell necrosis.

The Marine Corps has launched an investigation into unit officials to look into the situation at the time and determine whether there were any issues with patient management.

According to the family of Marine Private A on August 11, he lost consciousness and collapsed while running in a group physical training session at his unit in early July.

He was diagnosed with heatstroke and rhabdomyolysis at a military hospital emergency room, received treatment at an outside hospital for 12 days, and then returned to his unit.

Rhabdomyolysis is a condition in which muscles are damaged and muscle cells are destroyed due to excessive body temperature elevation, strenuous exercise, or trauma.

Even after his return, Private A suffered muscle pain while preparing for duties or training. When he visited the unit medical facility, he received a medical opinion stating that external activities and training restriction were necessary due to rhabdomyolysis.

Based on this medical opinion, he requested to be excused from training, but Private A's side claims that the unit forced him to participate in a battalion training session held in late July.

He added that during the training process which lasted for several days, he experienced dizziness and vomiting symptoms, and after returning, he confirmed that his muscles were severely damaged.

He was subsequently diagnosed with a recurrence of rhabdomyolysis at a military hospital and has been hospitalized at an external private hospital for treatment until recently.

Private A's family claimed, "We want to question the irresponsibility of the military officers who made him participate in training and caused a recurrence even though there were opinions from doctors and military medical officers." They added, "Unit officials have not even apologized so far."

They also stated, "How can we trust the Marine Corps and send him back to the unit?" and "Isn't this a form of hazing?"

In response, the Marine Corps acknowledged that Private A's recurrence of rhabdomyolysis was linked to his participation in the training.

A Marine Corps official said, "There are aspects related to the training participation process that require additional confirmation, so we have initiated an inspection targeting unit officials," adding, "We plan to handle the matter based on the investigation results."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.