Schumacher ski accident, coma and recovery

[ergenomic]

Latest update sounds very bad. Tragic.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... -life.html

[tim|away]

Latest update sounds very bad. Tragic.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... -life.html

'There may have been complications', said neurosurgeon Andreas Zieger of the University Clinic for neurosurgery in Oldenburg to Focus magazine. 'We should not speculate here. Ultimately, we are talking about life and death. A coma can in theory be maintained for a lifetime. It won’t hurt the human brain.'

... was turned into ...

'Michael Schumacher will be in a coma for the rest of his life'.

DailyFail strikes again. Let's focus on the most important part of what the neurosurgeon said and avoid speculation!

[Richard]

DailyFail strikes again.

Yup, they do have a nasty habit of taking "something could happen" and turning it into a shocking headline that infers something has/will happen.

[Schumi Fan]

I suspect this is a cynical ploy by the press to force a statement from the hospital or family. The family are under enough stress and pressure without this.

[The Pilot]

http://www1.skysports.com/f1/news/24191 ... is-manager

[turbof1]

I don't think he'll get better... . Don't want to sound as a pessimist, but the condition has been unchanged for more then 2 weeks now. Either he'll get further surgery and then hope for the best, or I fear the worst because he isn't going to get suddenly better.

[SectorOne]

It´s a very tricky situation... Just from what i´ve read i don´t think he will make it.
I´m not an optimist in any way so someone else might have a different opinion.

[Gridlock]

Why speculate? Just hope.

[beelsebob]

I don't think he'll get better... . Don't want to sound as a pessimist, but the condition has been unchanged for more then 2 weeks now. Either he'll get further surgery and then hope for the best, or I fear the worst because he isn't going to get suddenly better.

People have a very odd view of brain injury.

Look, the bottom line is, brains are weird. After an injury like this, they can do all kinds of weird things. They can go for months in a coma, and then wake up, and recover fully. They can remain in a coma for years. They can look like they're recovering, and then suddenly take a turn for the worse. They can look like no progress is being made, and then suddenly improve. It's really unpredictable.

Even his surgeons simply can not say "I don't think he'll get better" in this kind of situation. The best we can do is sit, and wait, and hope that he comes back in a form that we'd like to remember him in.

[WillerZ]

Read anything from the daily mail with this old, but still relevant, satire in mind:

http://sniffpetrol.com/2014/01/02/schum ... ws-latest/

[lebesset]

stirling moss was in a coma for a month [ not induced ] ; paralysed down one side for 6 months
drove at le mans until he was 80 !
still to early to know the final outcome

[kaller]

German professor Benedikt Pannen gave an interview (he was also treating somebody being in coma after taking part in a tv game show) and he said that the cooling of the body while in coma is a questionable act. Professor Steiger even said it is actually a rather desperate meassure and was removed from the international medicinal guidances. He said that there is no scientific proof that it is helpful yet it may lead to complications as the immune system gets weakened by it which might lead to sepsis. Pannen said it might lead to a greater chance of bleedings which is the last thing you would want to risk in this situation.

Prof. Dr. Peter Vajkoczy said that Schumacher being still in coma means that there are still some problems the doctors cannot control or be certain of, which is most likely the pressure on the brain in this case. He said it is not unusual to let patients stay in coma for 3 to 4 weeks, and the length of coma is no indication of the future progress.

Javier Fandino said although what was done is Schumacher's case is the usual procedure, it is not as accepted as the media might suggest. in fact some data might lead to the conclusion that opening the skull does more harm than good. he also said there is much real scientifc data missing which tracks the long term outcome of different treatments. he said currently there is no scientifically accepted systematic procedure to treat these brain injuries.

Sabine Kehm said Schumacher's family is thankful for the doctors for their work and that they are confident in their abilities. Michael's state is still regarded as stable.

[SectorOne]

This might be a stupid question but do they know if the brain is functioning normally?
Or is that something you can only find out when they wake him up?

by functioning normally i mean his brain not being scrambled eggs.

[Shrieker]

stirling moss was in a coma for a month [ not induced ] ; paralysed down one side for 6 months
drove at le mans until he was 80 !
still to early to know the final outcome

Not to mention he took a tumble three storeys down through an elevator shaft aged 80, broke his feet and still recovered ! I can't even imagine recovering from that aged twenty something. Some are just made to last, you know... As -I think- Schumi is too.

[flattyre]

I remember wondering how on earth anyone, let alone somebody aged 80, could only have broken feet after falling three stories?!

With regards Schumacher, I know this has been said time and time again, but there really is not much we can assume for ourselves. The only people who truly know what's going on are the doctors treating him - so, until they say something, I'm simply waiting and hoping (and taking the belief that no news is good news)