Michael Schumacher - Updates and well-wishes

[Greig]

Michael is a sporting hero to me, along with Ally McCoist off course

Although I say sporting hero for Michael, as a person he is a top bloke who done a lot for charity and would go out of his way to help others if he could, sure he was totally opposite on the track

[redsteph]

I get annoyed when people say - well there are other people in a coma with head injuries and no-one is talking about them. the difference is - I don't know these other people. I do know Michael, admittedly not personally but he's been a massive part of my life for nearly 20 years so I'm not going to apologise for being deeply worried and concerned about him. All the money in the world does not help you when you are lying in a coma with your fate in the hands of whoever or whatever you believe in. For the proper Michael fans on here I would say - please don't read the tabloid reports. Just look for the quotes that come from Sabine or the Grenoble hospital. That is the only information you need to be concerned with. the rest will only upset you needlessly

[SS454]

Nobody should be judged for how far their feelings to this unfortunate circumstance is. The topic on hand isn't about other tragedies or other people, it's specifically about Michael Schumacher. Everyone should feel free to share their thoughts and feelings as long as its for the good. It doesn't matter if you are slightly saddened and shrug it off or if you are weeping in tears. If that's how you feel, then that's how you feel. Let's continue our support and best wishes.

[vcs316]

Well said redsteph & SS454

[shamim179]

The silence surrounding Schumacher's condition is deafening but one must respect their privacy. Unfortunately, the media is going to speculate even further during a time where there is little to no information.

It appears that the symptoms and methodologlies that Schumacher is portraying/undergoing here are very similar to that of a stroke victim.

[bonzo]

The silence surrounding Schumacher's condition is deafening but one must respect their privacy. Unfortunately, the media is going to speculate even further during a time where there is little to no information.

It appears that the symptoms and methodologlies that Schumacher is portraying/undergoing here are very similar to that of a stroke victim.

We do need another press release, at least. It has been over 10 days with no news. He is Michael Schumacher for god's sake, the fans do need some news, good or bad!!!
No news in this case is frightening!!

[Katu]

We do need another press release, at least. It has been over 10 days with no news. He is Michael Schumacher for god's sake, the fans do need some news, good or bad!!!
No news in this case is frightening!!

his manager spoke to media yesterday
and maybe sometimes there is no news to report..

[wisepie]

Well said redsteph & SS454

Quite agree, of course there are many other people suffering similar injuries, and we'd all wish them the best possible outcome, whatever their status in life. With Michael, just as it was with Felipe, we feel a special and deep connection with them because they stand for our hopes and beliefs, as 'heroes' of our cause, Scuderia Ferrari. It's sad that neither of them are now part of the team but it doesn't change our hopes and prayers that Michael will recover.

[redsteph]

We do need another press release, at least. It has been over 10 days with no news. He is Michael Schumacher for god's sake, the fans do need some news, good or bad!!!
No news in this case is frightening!!

Sabine released a statement yesterday - admittedly it didn't say much but then I don't think there is much to say. Michael is still in an induced coma but he is stable. I think the doctors are just waiting for the bruising to heal. As hard as it is, we will just have to be patient.

[bonzo]

It's a pity how this thread went down the order...

[Tobes]

It's a pity how this thread went down the order...

Yeah, I agree, but the (understandable) insistence on maintaing a complete silence regarding updates or news regarding Michaels condition has resulted in very little or nothing to 'chat' about, also, i'm guessing the reality of the situation is dawning on most of the members here and it's not a reality most want to accept right now, me included...

[Suzie]

It's a pity how this thread went down the order...

Until we get another update, I'm afraid there's not much more to say. Michael's situation crosses my mind several times a day but all anyone can do is wait and hope for as good an outcome as is possible at this stage

[shamim179]

The good thing is his situation is still stable. But that doesn't say much. What is more concerning is has there been any brain damage as a result of impaired circulation in the brain? This is perfectly possible but the important thing is he is still alive. Many probably wouldn't have made it what Schumacher went through. All we can do is hope and pray. This must be an extremely difficult time for his family so we must respect their wishes as opposed to prioritizing what fans want.

[BigGar32]

The good thing is his situation is still stable. But that doesn't say much. What is more concerning is has there been any brain damage as a result of impaired circulation in the brain? This is perfectly possible but the important thing is he is still alive. Many probably wouldn't have made it what Schumacher went through. All we can do is hope and pray. This must be an extremely difficult time for his family so we must respect their wishes as opposed to prioritizing what fans want.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk...-state-3047576

The above is just speculation and nothing has come from the medical team. Just pray it's not true.

[Hornet]

Maybe I'm too cynical, but I think all speculation by the media tend to be worst case scenario to create shock and attract viewers.

Certainly hope none of them will happen.

[shamim179]

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk...-state-3047576

The above is just speculation and nothing has come from the medical team. Just pray it's not true.

Well, the thing is I'm not starting to think this way because of the media but because of my own knowledge. If they had to cut through the skull twice to relieve blood pressure that would suggest that there was a blockage of some sort causing the high cranial blood pressure. Which means that blood flow was impaired to an extent. If blood does not flow to certain areas of brain tissue they quickly die. It can take just minutes. Now because of Schumacher's status they would have made sure that a team is monitoring his situation constantly and analyzing real time data. If the cranial blood pressure goes beyond a safe limit then emergency action is required. But time is still lost because of the time it takes to react and prepare.

[shamim179]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/25849148

Michael Schumacher: Felipe Massa praying for ex-Ferrari driver

Felipe Massa says he is praying for seven-time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher every day.

Schumacher, 45, remains in an induced coma after suffering brain injuries in a skiing accident on 29 December.

"Dear Michael, my great friend, you helped me so much in my career, and I pray for you every day," Massa, Schumacher's Ferrari team-mate in 2006, wrote on the manufacturer's website.

"I want to see you stronger than ever, just as always. I give you a big hug."

Schumacher remains in a stable but critical condition in hospital in Grenoble after hitting his head on a rock when skiing at the French Alpine resort of Meribel.

His wife Corinna is maintaining a constant bedside vigil and recently issued her thanks for messages of support, insisting her husband "is a fighter (who) will not give up".

Massa, 32, recently competed in an annual karting race in his native Brazil and wore Schumacher's name on his visor.

The pair represented Ferrari during Schumacher's final season in a 10-year spell with the Italian constructor.

The German finished second in the driver's championship, behind Fernando Alonso, with Massa in third.

[Ste]

From Gary Hartstein

The Daily Mail has done it again. With today’s headline they’ve “forced” me to take to my blog to help clarify some of what’s being said.

As with everything that I’ve said, tweeted or written since Michael’s accident, I need to make clear that I have not seen Michael, not seen his scans, and not had any contact with the medical team caring for him. I’m going to base the following on what has been said by his care team, on the things that have not been said (by anyone), and on my clinical experience (and that of colleagues) with similarly injured patients.

What is likely happening now? Michael is almost certainly still in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). I say this primarily because it is rather likely that he still requires this level of care given his injuries, but also because had he been moved from the ICU to a normal room, this would have been sufficiently newsworthy to have almost certainly been announced. If Michael’s breathing is still handled by a respirator, he will almost certainly have had a tracheostomy done. This is more comfortable for the patient, spares the patient from potential damage to the vocal cords, and can make weaning from the respirator easier. It can also be easily closed later, when appropriate.

More importantly is the question of the “artificial coma”. Now those of you who’ve been reading me since the beginning have no doubt noticed that I HATE the term “artificial coma”. It’s confusing and doesn’t transmit any useful information. Initially Michael was no doubt maintained at a VERY deep level of sedation, deep enough to virtually suppress most electric activity in the cerebral cortex (the outer layer of the brain, responsible for higher intellectual functioning). This was done to help manage what were extremely high and dangerous levels of intracranial pressure (ICP, see previous blog entries).

Now that the acute phase of the injury has largely passed, it is almost certain that ICP is no longer problematic. The swelling and bruising are being resorbed. This means that the sedation will certainly have been lightened. Remember that having a tube in the windpipe is a pretty significant and painful stimulus. So sedation is almost always needed to help the patient tolerate the tube, to allow mechanical ventilation, and permit all the other “aggressions” that are part of day-to-day ICU routine. If this is the case, then the care team will be repeatedly, and considerably, lightening the sedation, in order to start weaning Michael from the ventilator, and to allow neurologic evaluation.

This would be good – if the sedation is light, and if respiratory weaning (getting Michael to breathe by himself) is progressing, with a neurological status that allows this, then we can relax for a few weeks, and see how the situation evolves. This situation would mean progress has been made, and renders further prognostication impossible. Progress will continue at an unknown and unknowable speed, and will stop at an unknown and unknowable level of function.

It is also conceivable, at the other end of the “goodness” spectrum, that the sedation has been turned off, that Michael is tolerating the tube, but is neither breathing adequately on his own nor showing significant signs of emerging. You understand that tolerating a tube with no sedation implies rather severe problems with deep levels of the brain, as does the lack of adequate breathing despite stopping the sedatives. At three weeks post injury, this is the worst outcome we could hope for, as it would indicate a rather high probability that normal consciousness will not be regained.

A brief word about the terms “critical” and “stable”. First of all, as used with respect to the condition of hospitalised patients, neither is precisely defined. So it’s important to see them rather more like an impressionistic image than as an accurate statement of physiology. Critical means imminent life threat or threat to a vital system. Stable means that something is not changing, and is usually being maintained within normal limits. So Michael is no longer CRITICAL (the ICP has normalised), and STABLE, as hisphysiologicalparameters are now acceptably “constant”.

Ok let’s get down to the hard stuff here. What are the possible outcomes? I’ll look at some of them, mostly with an eye to defining terms we’re likely to see thrown about in the near future, so that we can be precise ourselves, and be critical when faced with imprecise, ambiguous, or misleading information from others (are you listening Daily Mail?).

Now remember, all we know with certainty about Michael’s injuries comes from the press conferences given by his care team. After explaining the how and why of evacuating the right-side extradural hematoma (on the Sunday) and then the left-sided intracerebral hematoma (on the Monday), the neurosurgeon let slip a VERY telling statement.

I’m almost quoting him here, translating from the French. He said “don’t think that we evacuated two hematomas and that’s it”. “Michael has lots of hematomas in his brain, on the left, on the right, and in the middle”.

Damn. See, the “middle” is where all the important stuff happens – awareness, arousal, control of blood pressure, respiration, swallowing etc. And the left – well that’s usually language. Etc etc. The neurosurgeon, intentionally or not, painted a rather catastrophic neurologic picture.

First off let me say that it isEXTREMELYunlikely (I’d honestly say virtually impossible) that the Michael we knew prior to this fall will ever be back.

I think that it will have to be considered to be a triumph of human physical resiliency, and of modern neurointensive care, if Michael is able to walk, feed himself, dress himself, and if he retains significant elements of his previous personality. If recovery proceeds to this point (which is totally POSSIBLE, if perhaps rather improbable), it is an open question as to how well the “higher functions” (memory, concentration, reading, planning, etc) will recover. Please note, I would love to be proven wrong about this!

At the other end of the spectrum would be continuedcoma. Coma is defined as a state where there is neither wakefulness nor awareness (the patient cannot be woken by stimuli), no meaningful interaction with the environment, and no voluntary actions. This is obviously catastrophic. This outcome is entirely possible based on what we know about the brain’s primary injuries (the fall, the hematomas, bruises, etc) as well as the relatively long period with high ICP.

It happens that patients in coma emerge sufficiently to show spontaneous eye-opening, and even sleep-wake cycles (demonstratingwakefulnessorarousal), but show no interaction with the environment, and no signs of any higher function (thought, speech, etc). This is called avegetative state. Definitions vary somewhat, but usually after four weeks it is termed apersistentvegetative state, and after one year it is called apermanentvegetative state. Very roughly speaking, about 50% of head trauma patients who are in a vegetative state one month after injury become conscious, often with significant neurologic impairment. If the vegetative state persists for six months, this falls to roughly 20%, usually with severe impairment. After one year, resumption of normal consciousness is very rare, and, when it happens, function is usually gravely altered.

Whereas a patient in a vegetative state shows no signs of awareness, a patient in aminimally conscious statewill show definite signs of awareness of either self and/or of the environment. This may include obeying simple orders, some intelligible language use, or other behaviors that seem “goal directed”. Examples would be appropriate emotional responses, appropriate eye tracking, consistent and appropriate movement or vocalisation in response to language (not just sounds). These signs usually fluctuate through the day, and over time. Importantly, the chances of meaningful recovery from a minimally conscious state are higher than from a vegetative state. They are however, still disappointingly low.

There is certainly reason for worry – lot’s of worry. But no reason to lose hope. Everyone who works with head-injured patients has seen VERY severely injured patients (who were not expected to do well)recover acceptably. All we can do is wait, pray, and be behind Michael and his loved ones.

[shamim179]

That article says it all.

The impact force was so immense that the brain wobbled violently within the skull pressing against the blood vessels between the layer of skull and the brain and also badly bruising the brain in the process.

Looks like this could go on for a while. There are various types of hematomas but I'm assuming that the one Schumacher has got is subdural based on the nature of the accident. If you read on that subject the information is quite alarming.

If that is the case that Schumacher has multiple hematomas throughout the brain it isn't surprising that he was put into a coma thereby forcefully reducing brain activity thus reducing blood circulation.

[Sianellen]

That feels like a much more honest and understandable explanation of the situation. Thanks for posting.

Get well soon Michael.

[jocaranz]

Yeah epidural hematoma is mostly seen in head injuries/accidents, if the accident is so severe id agree a longer induced coma will be beneficial. Its nowt proising but ill hope for the best. SCHUMACHER STILL NUMERO UNO. attitude, style. everything

[jocaranz]

Its nowt promising but ill hope for the best. SCHUMACHER STILL NUMERO UNO. attitude, style. everything

[redsteph]

I just want to speak to these so called journalists. Do they actually have any respect at all. Todays reports just make me so angry. I had people coming up to me in work saying - 'ooh it's not looking good for Michael is it' and I had to say to them time and again - these are not official reports. It's just some neurologist somewhere speculating on what might be happening based on cases they have known.
it's upsetting for Michael's family but obviously they are more aware of Michael's actual situation. What about all the fans worldwide who are deeply worried. We have to try and get on with our normal everyday lives. I heard the story on the radio this morning and it really upset me even though I knew it wasn't based on any facts. Why are the press so keen to give up on Michael? - oh yeah it sells more papers

[impactX]

No news is good news. Everyday, I am quietly hoping he will recover to live a relatively normal life. I'd rather stay hopeful than to look at journalists spinning the story to spread fear. Take care everyone and don't take anything for granted.

[racingbradley]

Shame on you Daily Mail.
All we can do is hope and pray even if he is not his fit former self----- seeing and hearing him interact with others would be good.

[Tony]

Where did this come from?

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/video/sch...190207119.html

[Ste]

Where did this come from?

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/video/sch...190207119.html

I believe that will have stemmed from the article in the Mirror - they're just regurgitating the rubbish already written. No official news, so believe nothing.

[mirafiori]

Would be good if we could have some sort of update from the team looking after Michael, yes no news could be seen as good news but it has been 4 weeks since Michael was put into a artificial coma, which seems to be double the average for this medical situation, this is why there has been speculation regarding Michael health. Personally i think it is time for the hospital to make some sort of statement good or bad to stop all the gossip.

[Kyss4k]

So what Hartstein is saying is that if Michael ever wakes up, he will be lucky if he'll be able to walk an dress himself? Oh, that's so cruel

[wisepie]

It's still frightening to think of the implications for Michael and his family after reading all this but just to know there's a glimmer of hope would be enough for some of us. Some of these journos don't have a conscience and are just trying to get a headline, but we keep asking for info so I suppose it's only to be expected. Grateful for the explanations of his situation, though, painful though they are.