Woman survives internal decapitation

JLTucker · Post by **JLTucker** » 2007-05-17 01:46pm

MSNBC

DENVER - Even her surgeon calls her a miracle.

Shannon Malloy was critically injured Jan. 25 when a car crash slammed her into the dashboard. Her skull separated from her spine, although her skin, spinal cord and other internal organs remained intact.

The rare condition is known as clinically as internal decapitation, and it left her with no control over her head.

Her injuries left Malloy with nerve damage that made her eyes cross, and she has difficulty swallowing. She was not paralyzed. She told her story to Denver station KMGH-TV.

Dr. Gary Ghiselli, an orthopedic spine surgeon at the Denver Spine Center, said he and his colleagues had never seen such an injury in someone still living.

“I’ve seen it once before,” Ghiselli said, “and, unfortunately, the patient didn’t make it.”

Even after the crash, physicians in Nebraska, where Malloy lives, told relatives they should prepare to say their goodbyes.

Ghiselli said a will to survive kept Malloy, 30, alive long enough for surgeons to insert screws in her head and neck and attach a halo to minimize movement — no easy task.

“My skull slipped off my neck about five times,” Malloy said. “Every time they tried to screw this to my head, I would slip.”

Doctors eventually stabilized her head and strengthened her neck. The halo has since been removed.

“It’s a miracle that she was able to survive from the actual accident,” Ghiselli said. “It’s a miracle that she’s made the progress that she’s made.”

Fucking wow. That is all I have to say about this.

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2007-05-17 01:53pm

Pfft.

Ted C · Post by **Ted C** » 2007-05-17 04:34pm

Naturally God gets all the credit for her survival...

Sturmfalke · Post by **Sturmfalke** » 2007-05-17 05:56pm

The rare condition is known as clinically as internal decapitation, and it left her with no control over her head.

In such a case, shouldn't the head lose control over the body and not vice versa?

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2007-05-17 06:00pm

Sturmfalke wrote: In such a case, shouldn't the head lose control over the body and not vice versa?

They mean mechanically. If she had her CNS disconnected at the neck, she would indeed be in trouble since just about all motor control and autonomics would be buggered.

Mrs Kendall · Post by **Mrs Kendall** » 2007-05-17 06:10pm

Sure she survived but damn she's gonna live a life of pain from now on.
Not to say that she's better off dead, I'm just sayin'.

WOW! That story with the boy, he only hit at 64km/h. We were in an accident at about 45km/h with only minor injuries. Glad we didn't hit a higher speed.

Enforcer Talen · Post by **Enforcer Talen** » 2007-05-17 07:27pm

Does she need a neckbrace/can she be repaired?

ThatGuyFromThatPlace · Post by **ThatGuyFromThatPlace** » 2007-05-18 02:09am

Enforcer Talen wrote:Does she need a neckbrace/can she be repaired?

repaired?
Gentlemen, we can rebuild her. We have the technology. We have the capability to build the world's first bionic woman.

PeZook · Post by **PeZook** » 2007-05-18 05:28am

How does that work? I'm having trouble imagining that. Could we get a nice diagram?

LaserRifleofDoom · Post by **LaserRifleofDoom** » 2007-05-19 01:26am