Question
My friend was in a motorcycle accident the 3 days ago. He is 28 years old and otherwise healthy. He suffered a shear fracture on his skull with no massive injuries or bleeding in the brain.  He also has a fractured C2. He is currently on a ventilator and in a coma. Doctors are "expecting" him to be out of the coma within the week. Visitors have said that he seems responsive to their touch by squeezing back their hands and even attempted to open his eyes yesterday.  I live far away from him to visit and I am only able to get hearsay information on his status. What is the prognosis on my friend? Will he wake up?

Answer
Hi Maria, first let me say how sorry I am for your friend, his family and you, these types of injuries are never easy. My experiences with doctors is they tend to err on the side of caution, so if they "expect" him to come out of his coma, he most likely will. I am not a doctor, my knowledge is from living my last 37 plus years of life as a C4-C5 quadriplegic. Anyway, I guess my concerns for your friend would first be for him to come out of his coma. Secondly I would be concerned that he might have some brain damage, and since he fractured his spine at the C2 level I'd be concerned with the possibility of him having some spinal cord damage. But based on what you've been told it sounds like he has hand/finger movement; which is a good sign. You'll know more once he awakens from his coma. I will pray for his full recovery!
Sincerely, Ken