Fears grow that Michael Schumacher will be in a coma for the rest of his life because he has still not recovered enough to be woken

  • German media rife with speculation after speaking to brain injury experts
  • Formula One star has been in artificially induced coma for the last 18 days
  • Bild newspaper says his condition is so grave there are no plans to wake
  • Silence from his management and medical team has also fuelled concerns

By Allan Hall

PUBLISHED: 12:05 EST, 15 January 2014 | UPDATED: 06:54 EST, 16 January 2014


Fears are growing in Germany that stricken F1 legend Michael Schumacher may be in a coma for the rest of his life.

German weekly news magazine Focus reported that 'Schumacher could be in a coma forever' after speaking with experts on his condition. 

Bild newspaper also reported that his condition is so grave that there are currently no plans to wake him.

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Fearing the worst: German media has been speculating that Michael Schumacher may never come out of his coma after speaking to experts about the progress of his condition following his skiing accident last month

Fearing the worst: German media has been speculating that Michael Schumacher may never come out of his coma after speaking to experts about the progress of his condition following his skiing accident last month

He has been in an artificially induced state of unconsciousness for 18 days now and the silence from his management and the medical teams treating him in Grenoble, France, lead many to fear the worst.

The coma means that oxygen to his brain is reduced, therefore it works less and is better placed to recover from the injuries sustained during a low-speed ski accident on December 29. 

But Schumacher, 44, has not recovered anywhere near sufficiently to be awoken from his coma, leading to the speculation that he might be committed to it for the rest of his days.

 

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Patients placed in such comas are usually brought out of them after one to two weeks.

'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.'

Strain: Schumacher's wife Corinna (above) and their two children have been maintaining a constant bedside vigil at his hospital in France since his accident on December 29

Strain: Schumacher's wife Corinna (above) and their two children have been maintaining a constant bedside vigil at his hospital in France since his accident on December 29

 

But side effects include anaesthetic increasingly stressing the liver, muscle breakdown and rises in intracranial pressure as a result of cerebrospinal fluid not circulating efficiently.

Professor Zieger added: 'Brain injuries are among the most complicated injuries that can happen to the human body. 

'Predictions about how long a person might be in a coma or potential complications are seldom reliable.'

Cologne neurological expert Professor Gereon Fink fears that his long coma indicates serious damage in the brain and that his condition remains critical.

'He assumes that Michael Schumacher’s health condition is apparently worse than hoped for,' reported a news website.

Support: Fans hold F1 Ferrari team flags outside Schumacher's hospital. While some racing teams have banned drivers from risky off-track activities, Ferrari says it has issued no such directives

Support: Fans hold F1 Ferrari team flags outside Schumacher's hospital. While some racing teams have banned drivers from risky off-track activities, Ferrari says it has issued no such directives

'If the injuries are so severe that it would harm the patient, he is kept longer in the medically induced coma,' said professor Fink.

'Depending on where bleeding has taken place can lead to unilateral paralysis, speech disorders or personality changes.'

Schumacher, whose wife Corinna and two children are maintaining a constant bedside vigil in France, has undergone two operations since the accident at the resort of Meribel and has undergone fresh scans this week.

German media said that the risk of brain haemorrhage remain high and why he is still classified as critically ill.

His catastrophic accident has already had a knock-on effect for some current racing drivers who, according to Bild newspaper, have now been issued with a list of off-track activities they are now banned from undertaking.

Bild says skiing, motocross and motorbike riding are out.

Red Bull, it reports, has banned driver Daniel Ricciardo from surfing in the sea off his hometown of Perth in Australia because of the danger of shark attacks.

Ferrari says it has issued no such directives to its drivers saying: 'We trust our drivers to be able to decide what is dangerous and what is not.'

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Give him time. This is a special kind of man not giving to cave in after a few laps.

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So true.

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Praying daily for his recovery.

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How can you be in a coma "forever"? What a stupid comment. Come on Shumuckster, pull through and make a recovery. And if he does, it won't be a miracle, it won't have nothing to do with god. It will just mean that he is fortunate, lucky, and got good medical care.

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Sad reminder of Prince Johan Friso, son of the former Queen Beatrix, he was in a coma for over a year, I believe, before he succumbed to his injuries from a skiing accident. I wish Michael Schumacher well and hope he recovers, but it sounds very bad.

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Ill-informed speculation and conjecture. Just what his family need at this moment in time. Well done DM.

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My Stepson suffered a severe head injury .. told us that he was brain dead ..and the best option was to switch off the machine .. unbelievably he started breathing by himself and 8yrs later .. he is still alive. He does suffer from fits and memory loss .& needs someone to look after his bills and monies .. The brain is a complex machine my stepson should of been dead, but he defied all odds

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I hope his family are there, talking to him, even if there is no obvious signs of response. I was in a coma following a RTS for many weeks and am convinced it was the constant talking by my family, music being played, even having a tv placed in the room so they could watch and talk about my favourite programmes that helped me. I hope he makes a full recovery.

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People have been in comas for years before and made recovery.

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The paparazzi have no respect taking photos of his distraught wife!

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