Medical Miracle- 2-year-old survives internal decapitation

[Guest guest]

I saw this story on TV news several days ago. What a miracle for the little boy and his family!Sharon http://www.aolhealth.com/2010/12/14/two-year-old-survives-internal-decapitation/(there is a video at the link above but you can search this and find several other articles on the web)By Deborah Huso Dec 14th 2010 1:19PMCategories: News

Two-year-old Micah s,

of Phoenix, Ariz., is lucky to be alive after his skull was separated from his spine in a car accident last August. Following the accident, in

which his mother, s, and 4-year-old sister were involved,

Micah was taken to St. ph's Hospital and Medical Center

in Phoenix, where he underwent surgery and therapy. Two months later, he was able to walk and talk again, but he still struggles to retain his

balance and some aspects of his speech. Doctors say, however, he is lucky to be alive.Micah suffered an internal decapitation. Also called atlanto-occipital (AO) dislocation,

the conditon is almost solely associated with trauma and occurs when the skull is completely separated from the spine. "Commonly patients die," Dr. Ed Benzel, Chairman of the Department of Neurology at the Cleveland Clinic, told AOL Health.

Dr. Matt Likavec, Director Emeritus of Neurosurgery at MetroHealth Medical Center

in Cleveland, has witnessed AO dislocation firsthand. "I've seen the gamut from death to full recovery," he told AOL Health. Likavec has witnessed two full recoveries from AO dislocation. "Both of these children were in auto accidents," he says. Two years later they are walking around normally. One child has completely recovered with no signs of initial injury, and another has some trouble moving his head.

However, all AO victims do not make a full recovery. "Often people are never the same," says Benzel. Many things can happen when an AO injury occurs. The skull is separated from the spine and can move around and kink critical nerves and arteries and also block blood flow to the brain.

Some patients can die from not being able to breath. "Our stimulus to breath comes from the brain or the brain stem," explains Benzel. "If those impulses are cut off, the patient just simply can't breathe."

A patient's long-term prognosis can only be determined on a case-by-case

basis. If the injury doesn't affect the breathing, then a patient may be saved. However, other neurological injuries can occur. The only treatment, if a patient survives the initial skull/spine separation, is to stabilize the spine.

In Micah's case, "a perfect storm of things came together," says Dr. Valadka, Chief of Neuro Trama at Seton Brain and Spine Institute in Austin, Texas, and spokesperson for the American Academy of Neurological Surgeons.

Micah had a properly installed car seat, a mother who kept her cool and

took care of her son, and an injury that didn't affect his breathing. The medical team arrived quickly and took the necessary steps to stabilize his spine, and a surgeon took the right steps to save Micah's life. His doctors expect his condition to keep improving with time.

"We're going to keep pushing him and pushing him and pushing him with his therapy," Micah's father, s, told ABC News.

[Guest guest]

What a special Christmas story. My prays are with the boy and his family. Margaret A. CoteTo: Group <mserslife >Sent: Wed, December 22, 2010 10:15:53 AMSubject: Medical Miracle- 2-year-old survives internal

decapitation

I saw this story on TV news several days ago. What a miracle for the little boy and his family!Sharon http://www.aolhealth.com/2010/12/14/two-year-old-survives-internal-decapitation/(there is a video at the link above but you can search this and find several other articles on the web)By Deborah Huso Dec 14th 2010 1:19PMCategories: News

Two-year-old Micah s,

of Phoenix, Ariz., is lucky to be alive after his skull was separated from his spine in a car accident last August. Following the accident, in

which his mother, s, and 4-year-old sister were involved,

Micah was taken to St. ph's Hospital and Medical Center

in Phoenix, where he underwent surgery and therapy. Two months later, he was able to walk and talk again, but he still struggles to retain his

balance and some aspects of his speech. Doctors say, however, he is lucky to be alive.Micah suffered an internal decapitation. Also called atlanto-occipital (AO) dislocation,

the conditon is almost solely associated with trauma and occurs when the skull is completely separated from the spine. "Commonly patients die," Dr. Ed Benzel, Chairman of the Department of Neurology at the Cleveland Clinic, told AOL Health.

Dr. Matt Likavec, Director Emeritus of Neurosurgery at MetroHealth Medical Center

in Cleveland, has witnessed AO dislocation firsthand. "I've seen the gamut from death to full recovery," he told AOL Health. Likavec has witnessed two full recoveries from AO dislocation. "Both of these children were in auto accidents," he says. Two years later they are walking around normally. One child has completely recovered with no signs of initial injury, and another has some trouble moving his head.

However, all AO victims do not make a full recovery. "Often people are never the same," says Benzel. Many things can happen when an AO injury occurs. The skull is separated from the spine and can move around and kink critical nerves and arteries and also block blood flow to the brain.

Some patients can die from not being able to breath. "Our stimulus to breath comes from the brain or the brain stem," explains Benzel. "If those impulses are cut off, the patient just simply can't breathe."

A patient's long-term prognosis can only be determined on a case-by-case

basis. If the injury doesn't affect the breathing, then a patient may be saved. However, other neurological injuries can occur. The only treatment, if a patient survives the initial skull/spine separation, is to stabilize the spine.

In Micah's case, "a perfect storm of things came together," says Dr. Valadka, Chief of Neuro Trama at Seton Brain and Spine Institute in Austin, Texas, and spokesperson for the American Academy of Neurological Surgeons.

Micah had a properly installed car seat, a mother who kept her cool and

took care of her son, and an injury that didn't affect his breathing. The medical team arrived quickly and took the necessary steps to stabilize his spine, and a surgeon took the right steps to save Micah's life. His doctors expect his condition to keep improving with time.

"We're going to keep pushing him and pushing him and pushing him with his therapy," Micah's father, s, told ABC News.