[glennthegeek2]

The Dressage Radio Show has an update on Courtney King-Dye from her trainer Lendon Gray at dressageradio.com.

[hallauer5]

I was just about to post the same thing! Thank you so much for the update, looks like things are going better. *jingles*

[ridgeback]

Thank you for posting the info...Made me tear up

[TheHorseProblem]

Here's a link:

http://dressageradio.horseradionetwo...y-lendon-gray/

[tollertwins]

So for those of us w/ no speakers, what did it say?

[BaroquePony]

I will give this a shot though I am tired right now.

Lendon Gray spoke. She said that Courtney has slowly been opening her eyes. Courtney does follow some movements ... like looking at photographs of her dog and horses (? I think) and she has turned her head a bit to follow the same. She has more movement in her left arm, leg and side in general than her right (maybe she hasn't moved her right side yet?). She has followed her husband ... with her eyes at least and maybe her head.

These injuries are very serious. She had what is called a "brain shear" where the brain is bounced inside the skull hard enough to damage the encasing (I think). Very slow to heal. Said she (Courtney) was very close to the "surface".

Lendon said the support and good tidings from all over the world have been overwhelming and much appreciated.

ETA: I put that in my owns words but tried to stay as close to what was said as I could.


My interpretation of that is that Courtney is showing signs of healing and improvement. She is not in a deep coma with no response at all. This type of movement has happened with patients that do make very good recoveries .... BUT I do not know of the situations where things go differently. There are other people on this BB that have a great deal more experience and knowledge of this type of thing than I do.

But, I think it sounds pretty good under the circumstances of how serious this type of injury is. I do know that a fractured skull IS serious, but has various outcomes.

[arnika]

I just wanted to post a link to one of the best web pages I've seen on traumatic brain injuries, especially covering brain shearing. If this is what occurred with Courtney(and it would be likely to happen) this explains very well what the physical results would be. Perhaps not totally for laymen but if you are really interested, read it carefully and just look in an online dictionary to explain more complex terms. It's very well done.

http://catalog.nucleusinc.com/displa...aph.php?MID=12

[BaroquePony]

Excellent link. That is what Lendon was talking about. Axonal shear.

[caevent]

Just wondering, but would wearing a helmet protect from this type of injury? Obviously it would have helped in the case of a skull fracture, but it seems like the "shaken baby syndrome" injury would be serious, helmet or not?

Not meaning to start any conflicts, just curious.

[BaroquePony]

I beleive Rodawn (on the thread discussing this type of injury) was kind enough to write a very detailed description of her injury .... same type of injury, serious AND she was wearing her helmet.

So, yes, you got it right, you can still have this happen without your helmet.

I think this type of injury occurs sometimes if you slip and fall on the ice. Fast, down hard, unexpected type of thing.

[caevent]

Got it, thanks!

[CatOnLap]

the axonal shearing can be somewhat reduced when wearing an ASTM or SEI approved helmet, because some of the sudden impact deceleration is slowed and absorbed by the collapsing foam layer. Which is why, once you've had a hit on your helmet, you should replace it. The collapsing foam liner does not go back to its original shape and you can't tell by looking at it that it has partially collapsed.

So yes, this is exactly the type of injury that helmets aim to reduce.

[cyberbay]

Would someone be able to explain the terms 'being awake,' 'conscious,' etc.?

Do those terms mean a patient has emerged from the coma? When she is able to 'follow with her eyes,' etc., what does that actually indicate in terms of her awareness?

Is awareness what the medical people are looking for? Am just confused by all of the above, which I think(?) has been mentioned in various posts, but am not sure what indicates definitive progress, etc...

Did read Rodawn's excellent post, but can't recall on which thread it was posted...

[mishmash]

There are varying degrees. As someone else posted, there is a scale, the Glascow coma scale, that quantifies those degrees. You and I would be a '15', we are awake, alert, able to follow commands and answer questions appropriately. Someone deeply unresponsive is a 3-unable to do any of the above.
Here is how the scale is determined:

I. Motor Response
6 - Obeys commands fully
5 - Localizes to noxious stimuli
4 - Withdraws from noxious stimuli
3 - Abnormal flexion, i.e. decorticate posturing
2 - Extensor response, i.e. decerebrate posturing
1 - No response

II. Verbal Response
5 - Alert and Oriented
4 - Confused, yet coherent, speech
3 - Inappropriate words and jumbled phrases consisting of words
2 - Incomprehensible sounds
1 - No sounds

III. Eye Opening
4 - Spontaneous eye opening
3 - Eyes open to speech
2 - Eyes open to pain
1 - No eye opening

From what I have read, would place CKD between an 8-10-just a guess.

[ccoronios]

Excellent, informative material - thank you so much for posting.
C

[TheHorseProblem]

I beleive Rodawn (on the thread discussing this type of injury) was kind enough to write a very detailed description of her injury .... same type of injury, serious AND she was wearing her helmet.

So, yes, you got it right, you can still have this happen without your helmet.

I think this type of injury occurs sometimes if you slip and fall on the ice. Fast, down hard, unexpected type of thing.

When I was in college, the boyfriend of a girl in one of my classes was standing talking to some other students when he was hit by a speeding bicyclist. He never woke up and was declared brain dead.

My neighbor was riding his bike down a flight of stairs when his wheel came off and he fell and hit his head and was killed instantly.

Stuff happens, even if you are wearing a helmet, but your chances of being killed are so much less.