Supercar crash: Cyclist suffers partial paralysis

23.05.12

"There is weakness in the limbs and he cannot stand. He is bedridden. An MRI of the spinal cord will be conducted on Tuesday to check whether the immobility is caused due to compression of nerves. If so, Lal would need to undergo a de-compression surgery," said Dr Deepak Aggarwal, neurosurgeon at the trauma centre. He also mentioned the patient's fractures in the cervical spine.

Dr MC Misra, chief of the centre, placed Lal's chances of making a complete recovery at 50:50. "Lal's body is battered from top to bottom. His head is badly injured; the cervical spine, chest and ribs are broken into several parts. He is conscious but can barely speak. The biggest risk is that the spinal cord injury may leave him paralysed for life. We are doing our best to save him."

The family of the accident victim is optimistic. "My father will recover from the injuries. It may take time, though," said Hemraj, Lal's eldest son who works in a private company. Hemraj said that his father had working at a kindergarten school in Lajpat Nagar for 18 years. "He was very punctual. Every day, he would cycle from our house in Dakshinpuri, Ambedkar Nagar to his workplace at 5am to avoid heavy traffic and speeding vehicles. Papa was riding in the cycle lane on the BRT corridor when the car hit him. The accident took place at 5.30 am but we were informed about it six hours later, around 11.30 am," Hemraj added. Prem, the younger son, rued that no one from the school where his father worked had visited him in hospital.

Source: Times of India