Da Matta making steady progress
Discussion
GP.com said:
Cristiano da Matta has yet to regain consciousness at the Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, Wisconsin, but his condition is improving all the time. Da Matta is becoming more alert each day and has been removed from the ventilator that was providing respiratory support since his accident.
It is expected that he will be moved from the intensive care unit within a day or two.
Good news. Poor bloke I seriously hope that he makes as fuller recovery as possible, Hakkinen style rather than Wendlinger for preference.Graham said:
wendlinger raced again didnt he ?
DTM for Audi but didn't seem to have the sparkle anymore.
He was quite stellar in the Sauber F1 car during 1993. Sauber's entrance into F1 during that year with Wendlinger & JJ Lehto was probably the best debut year in terms of speed & competitiveness I can remember, certainly from a privateer in the last 25 years. I don't think we'll see that again.
Transcript from a press conference with Dr Pinderski, Champ Car director of medical affairs:
THE MODERATOR: Chris, why don't you give us the latest medical update on what we have on Cristiano and what he's been through so far.
CHRIS PINDERSKI: I'm going to start kind of at the beginning. I'll kind of start from the time he hit the deer at Elkhart Lake. Everybody knows pretty much the details of the incident.
I think when the safety team got to the car, Cristiano was unconscious, so he was unconscious from the moment of impact. The Champ Car safety team extricated him very well from the car. I was actually on scene as well. He remained unconscious throughout the extrication. So we took him to an ambulance and stabilized him in the ambulance. I secured his airway.
Drivers that are unconscious for a prolonged period of time, prior to transport, need a secure airway as we call it in medicine. I did that. We established IV access. Then with the Theda Star helicopter flew him to they to Theda Clark Medical Center, where we knew they had very good neurosurgical support.
Cristiano needed a neurosurgical intervention on an emergency basis. He arrived at the hospital and he received a CAT scan from essentially his head to his pelvis to assure there were no other associated injuries. We didn't expect any, and none were found. But he entered the operating room 1 hour and 37 minutes after the incident, which is excellent in the overall management of head injuries.
I think you all know he suffered a right subdural hematoma, which is bleeding between the brain and a covering of the brain called the dura. When you have one of these injuries, there usually is an associated brain injury underneath that, the bleeding is fairly easy to take care of, however, the brain suffers an injury on a more microscopic and metabolic level that takes time to heal.
People that have these significant head injuries commonly get a significant amount of what's called cerebral edema, which is swelling of the brain. It's expected in these kind of injuries. He has been under very intense management of the brain swelling. It's actually receding.
Since his accident, the first several days he was very heavily sedated. They didn't want Cristiano to have any movements. It really limits his brain activity, to let his brain start to recover. After approximately three to four days, this sedation has been removed and currently he's under no sedation in the intensive care unit at the hospital.
Each day he has progressed a little bit more. This morning I've spoken to both Dr. Randall Johnson, the neurosurgeon, as well as the nursing staff. He's making slow but steady progress. He's doing things like purposeful movement. So, for example, if they physically pinch, for example, his left shoulder, he'll take his right hand and localize that and try to remove whatever stimuli is there.
It's a good early sign to the extent that his brain is able to recognize there's something going on over here and move his arm over to the appropriate place.
That being said, he's not doing anything to command. When they ask him, 'Cristiano, open your eyes,' he's still not doing things like that. He's making slow but steady progress. How the future goes is still unknown at this point.
He's been receiving excellent care in the intensive care unit there. We expect that trend to continue. He'll be there for at least two more weeks and then decisions will be made about where to transfer him for more care.
Q. What can we look for in the next like week to 10 days as signs of progress? What sort of progress would you be happy with, let's say, over the next week to 10 days?
CHRIS PINDERSKI: Any progress. As long as he's doing more day to day, we view that as progress. Head injuries are very, very difficult to predict what's going to happen. That's what has been the issue with Cristiano's injury and really any significant or major head injury: there's no way to tell what the outcome's going to be. It's literally a day-to-day process.
I think it's safe to say as long as there's positive progress being made each day, that's good. You know, when he's going to wake up, if he's going to wake up, is still unknown at this point. It's just watching him day to day and giving him supportive care. That's about all that can be said right now. It's just too hard to predict because brain injuries are just too tough to predict what's going to happen in the future.
Q. Is it encouraging? If there was no activity at all, he didn't respond to that...
CHRIS PINDERSKI: That would be much worse. In fact, early on, we didn't know how he was going to do. The injury he sustained, although he looked fine on the outside, it's a pretty bad brain injury. When you take a deer hitting your head at 90 miles an hour or so, it's pretty significant.
I think it's safe to say that he's probably a little bit better than we expected at this point. He's made slow but steady progress. It's planed off a little bit in the last 24 hours. But nonetheless, he's doing a little bit more each day, and you have to look at that as a positive.
Q. Sounds like this whole operation couldn't have gone much better. You always learn something from every incident that happened. Have you learned anything?
CHRIS PINDERSKI: This actually couldn't have gone much better. Really the safety team does a great job, are very well-prepared to take care of these kind of things. We carry specifically airway management tools and things like that on the safety trucks and in the ambulances to be able to do these kind of things.
Getting someone into the operating room in less than two hours after a major head injury is excellent. Typically these kind of injuries are treated, you know, two to four hours. We actually had him under that two-hour window, which really helps in his ultimate outcome. Surgical intervention was necessary. The faster you can do it, the better off patients will do.
THE MODERATOR: Chris, why don't you give us the latest medical update on what we have on Cristiano and what he's been through so far.
CHRIS PINDERSKI: I'm going to start kind of at the beginning. I'll kind of start from the time he hit the deer at Elkhart Lake. Everybody knows pretty much the details of the incident.
I think when the safety team got to the car, Cristiano was unconscious, so he was unconscious from the moment of impact. The Champ Car safety team extricated him very well from the car. I was actually on scene as well. He remained unconscious throughout the extrication. So we took him to an ambulance and stabilized him in the ambulance. I secured his airway.
Drivers that are unconscious for a prolonged period of time, prior to transport, need a secure airway as we call it in medicine. I did that. We established IV access. Then with the Theda Star helicopter flew him to they to Theda Clark Medical Center, where we knew they had very good neurosurgical support.
Cristiano needed a neurosurgical intervention on an emergency basis. He arrived at the hospital and he received a CAT scan from essentially his head to his pelvis to assure there were no other associated injuries. We didn't expect any, and none were found. But he entered the operating room 1 hour and 37 minutes after the incident, which is excellent in the overall management of head injuries.
I think you all know he suffered a right subdural hematoma, which is bleeding between the brain and a covering of the brain called the dura. When you have one of these injuries, there usually is an associated brain injury underneath that, the bleeding is fairly easy to take care of, however, the brain suffers an injury on a more microscopic and metabolic level that takes time to heal.
People that have these significant head injuries commonly get a significant amount of what's called cerebral edema, which is swelling of the brain. It's expected in these kind of injuries. He has been under very intense management of the brain swelling. It's actually receding.
Since his accident, the first several days he was very heavily sedated. They didn't want Cristiano to have any movements. It really limits his brain activity, to let his brain start to recover. After approximately three to four days, this sedation has been removed and currently he's under no sedation in the intensive care unit at the hospital.
Each day he has progressed a little bit more. This morning I've spoken to both Dr. Randall Johnson, the neurosurgeon, as well as the nursing staff. He's making slow but steady progress. He's doing things like purposeful movement. So, for example, if they physically pinch, for example, his left shoulder, he'll take his right hand and localize that and try to remove whatever stimuli is there.
It's a good early sign to the extent that his brain is able to recognize there's something going on over here and move his arm over to the appropriate place.
That being said, he's not doing anything to command. When they ask him, 'Cristiano, open your eyes,' he's still not doing things like that. He's making slow but steady progress. How the future goes is still unknown at this point.
He's been receiving excellent care in the intensive care unit there. We expect that trend to continue. He'll be there for at least two more weeks and then decisions will be made about where to transfer him for more care.
Q. What can we look for in the next like week to 10 days as signs of progress? What sort of progress would you be happy with, let's say, over the next week to 10 days?
CHRIS PINDERSKI: Any progress. As long as he's doing more day to day, we view that as progress. Head injuries are very, very difficult to predict what's going to happen. That's what has been the issue with Cristiano's injury and really any significant or major head injury: there's no way to tell what the outcome's going to be. It's literally a day-to-day process.
I think it's safe to say as long as there's positive progress being made each day, that's good. You know, when he's going to wake up, if he's going to wake up, is still unknown at this point. It's just watching him day to day and giving him supportive care. That's about all that can be said right now. It's just too hard to predict because brain injuries are just too tough to predict what's going to happen in the future.
Q. Is it encouraging? If there was no activity at all, he didn't respond to that...
CHRIS PINDERSKI: That would be much worse. In fact, early on, we didn't know how he was going to do. The injury he sustained, although he looked fine on the outside, it's a pretty bad brain injury. When you take a deer hitting your head at 90 miles an hour or so, it's pretty significant.
I think it's safe to say that he's probably a little bit better than we expected at this point. He's made slow but steady progress. It's planed off a little bit in the last 24 hours. But nonetheless, he's doing a little bit more each day, and you have to look at that as a positive.
Q. Sounds like this whole operation couldn't have gone much better. You always learn something from every incident that happened. Have you learned anything?
CHRIS PINDERSKI: This actually couldn't have gone much better. Really the safety team does a great job, are very well-prepared to take care of these kind of things. We carry specifically airway management tools and things like that on the safety trucks and in the ambulances to be able to do these kind of things.
Getting someone into the operating room in less than two hours after a major head injury is excellent. Typically these kind of injuries are treated, you know, two to four hours. We actually had him under that two-hour window, which really helps in his ultimate outcome. Surgical intervention was necessary. The faster you can do it, the better off patients will do.
www.champcarworldseries.com/News/Article.asp?ID=10773
CRISTIANO DA MATTA TRANSFERRED OUT OF INTENSIVE CARE
LOVELAND, Colo., Aug. 20, 2006, 4:15 pm EDT - Champ Car World Series driver Cristiano da Matta (#10 RuSPORT Ford-Cosworth / Lola / Bridgestone) has been transferred out of the intensive care unit at Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, Wisc. His condition has improved significantly over the past few days, though he is still not completely conscious, responsive or able to speak. Da Matta was injured after colliding with a deer that ran onto the track near Turn Six at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisc. during a Champ Car Open Test on August 3, and has been at Theda Clark ever since, with his family and several members of the Champ Car community at his side.
Champ Car Medical Director Dr. Chris Pinderski has been in constant contact with the medical staff at Theda Clark to monitor the condition of da Matta.
"Cristiano is still making daily progress while recovering from injury two weeks ago," said Pinderski. "Yesterday, he was transferred out of the intensive care unit to an intermediate care unit at Theda Clark Medical Center. We will now begin the process of planning for longer term rehabilitation which is necessary after significant head injuries."
Da Matta's teammate, Justin Wilson (#9 CDW / RuSPORT Ford-Cosworth / Lola / Bridgestone), traveled to Neenah yesterday with RuSPORT president Jeremy Dale, to visit da Matta and his family.
"Justin and I are both very happy to see the improvement in Cristiano's condition," said Dale. "The staff here at Theda Clark has told us that he is making remarkable progress, and that is encouraging to us and to the da Matta family."
Further updates on da Matta's condition will be issued by RuSPORT as they become available.
Since da Matta's accident on August 3, RuSPORT and Champ Car have received many messages of support for da Matta. In response, RuSPORT also announced that, in lieu of sending flowers and gifts, anyone wishing to express their support for da Matta during his recovery is asked to please make a donation in his name to Hole in the Wall Camps, an official charity of the Champ Car World Series. Donation information can be found by visiting www.holeinthewallcamps.org, or by calling 203-562-1203.
Get well cards for da Matta can be sent to:
Cristiano da Matta, patient
Theda Clark Medical Center
130 2nd St.
Neenah, WI 54956
press release said:
CRISTIANO DA MATTA TRANSFERRED OUT OF INTENSIVE CARE
LOVELAND, Colo., Aug. 20, 2006, 4:15 pm EDT - Champ Car World Series driver Cristiano da Matta (#10 RuSPORT Ford-Cosworth / Lola / Bridgestone) has been transferred out of the intensive care unit at Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, Wisc. His condition has improved significantly over the past few days, though he is still not completely conscious, responsive or able to speak. Da Matta was injured after colliding with a deer that ran onto the track near Turn Six at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisc. during a Champ Car Open Test on August 3, and has been at Theda Clark ever since, with his family and several members of the Champ Car community at his side.
Champ Car Medical Director Dr. Chris Pinderski has been in constant contact with the medical staff at Theda Clark to monitor the condition of da Matta.
"Cristiano is still making daily progress while recovering from injury two weeks ago," said Pinderski. "Yesterday, he was transferred out of the intensive care unit to an intermediate care unit at Theda Clark Medical Center. We will now begin the process of planning for longer term rehabilitation which is necessary after significant head injuries."
Da Matta's teammate, Justin Wilson (#9 CDW / RuSPORT Ford-Cosworth / Lola / Bridgestone), traveled to Neenah yesterday with RuSPORT president Jeremy Dale, to visit da Matta and his family.
"Justin and I are both very happy to see the improvement in Cristiano's condition," said Dale. "The staff here at Theda Clark has told us that he is making remarkable progress, and that is encouraging to us and to the da Matta family."
Further updates on da Matta's condition will be issued by RuSPORT as they become available.
Since da Matta's accident on August 3, RuSPORT and Champ Car have received many messages of support for da Matta. In response, RuSPORT also announced that, in lieu of sending flowers and gifts, anyone wishing to express their support for da Matta during his recovery is asked to please make a donation in his name to Hole in the Wall Camps, an official charity of the Champ Car World Series. Donation information can be found by visiting www.holeinthewallcamps.org, or by calling 203-562-1203.
Get well cards for da Matta can be sent to:
Cristiano da Matta, patient
Theda Clark Medical Center
130 2nd St.
Neenah, WI 54956
Edited by fozzi on Thursday 24th August 15:44
Update
Major progress for da Matta
There is good news from the Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, Wisconsin with Champ Car doctor Chris Pinderski telling US reporter Robin Miller that Cristiano da Matta has "turned the corner" and is now making impressive progress in his recovery. It is nearly a month since da Matta collided with a deer while testing at Elkhart Lake and until a few days ago the situation was not looking good. But, according to Pinderski, da Matta is now "doing great" and is able to communicate in two languages but, while still a little confused, is calling his relatives by name and is walking around.
Pinderski said that hopefully da Matta will be moving into rehabilitation shortly.
GP.com said:
Major progress for da Matta
There is good news from the Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, Wisconsin with Champ Car doctor Chris Pinderski telling US reporter Robin Miller that Cristiano da Matta has "turned the corner" and is now making impressive progress in his recovery. It is nearly a month since da Matta collided with a deer while testing at Elkhart Lake and until a few days ago the situation was not looking good. But, according to Pinderski, da Matta is now "doing great" and is able to communicate in two languages but, while still a little confused, is calling his relatives by name and is walking around.
Pinderski said that hopefully da Matta will be moving into rehabilitation shortly.
Latest
Cristiano da Matta is continuing to make 'excellent' progress from the injuries he sustained in an accident during Champ Car testing at Road America last month.
The RuSPORT driver suffered severe head injuries after colliding with a deer that had run onto the Road America circuit on 3 August and underwent emergency surgery at Theda Clark Memorial Hospital for a subdural haematoma before spending time under sedation in intensive care to begin his long recovery.
Already able to walk and talk, da Matta is continuing to make fine progress and should be able to leave Theda Clark in the near future.
"Cristiano has continued to show excellent progress while recovering from his injury," Champ Car medical director Dr. Chris Pinderski said. "Early last week, he was transferred to the rehab unit at Theda Clark Medical Center where he is participating in a very intensive rehabilitation regimen designed specifically for patients with significant head injuries.
"Cristiano is looking forward to returning to Miami in the near future and will continue his rehab program there."
RuSPORT meanwhile has announced that Justin Wilson's #9 CDW / RuSPORT Champ Car will carry the logos of Theda Clark Medical Center, as well as the Champ Car Safety Team, during the Grand Prix of Road America weekend in appreciation of the efforts of those organisations for their help and support during da Matta's accident and his recovery.
Crash.net said:
Cristiano da Matta is continuing to make 'excellent' progress from the injuries he sustained in an accident during Champ Car testing at Road America last month.
The RuSPORT driver suffered severe head injuries after colliding with a deer that had run onto the Road America circuit on 3 August and underwent emergency surgery at Theda Clark Memorial Hospital for a subdural haematoma before spending time under sedation in intensive care to begin his long recovery.
Already able to walk and talk, da Matta is continuing to make fine progress and should be able to leave Theda Clark in the near future.
"Cristiano has continued to show excellent progress while recovering from his injury," Champ Car medical director Dr. Chris Pinderski said. "Early last week, he was transferred to the rehab unit at Theda Clark Medical Center where he is participating in a very intensive rehabilitation regimen designed specifically for patients with significant head injuries.
"Cristiano is looking forward to returning to Miami in the near future and will continue his rehab program there."
RuSPORT meanwhile has announced that Justin Wilson's #9 CDW / RuSPORT Champ Car will carry the logos of Theda Clark Medical Center, as well as the Champ Car Safety Team, during the Grand Prix of Road America weekend in appreciation of the efforts of those organisations for their help and support during da Matta's accident and his recovery.
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