Surgeons at Hadassah Medical Centre, Jerusalem, have reattached a 12-year-old boy’s head to his neck after a serious accident in which he was hit by a car while riding his bicycle.
Palestinian from the West Bank, Suleiman Hassan was airlifted to Hadassah Hospital’s trauma unit in Ein Kerem, where it was determined that the ligaments holding the posterior base of his skull were severely damaged, leaving it detached from the top vertebrae of his spine.
The condition, bilateral atlanto occipital joint dislocation, is commonly known as internal or orthopaedic decapitation, according to The Times of Jerusalem.
The injury is said to be very rare in adults, and even more so in children.h
The orthopaedic specialist who operated on the patient together, Dr. Ohad Einav with Dr. Ziv Asa and a large operating room and intensive care team, told of how “we fought for the boy’s life”.
He added: “The procedure itself is very complicated and took several hours. While in the operating room, we used new plates and fixations in the damaged area…
“Our ability to save the child was thanks to our knowledge and the most innovative technology in the operating room”.
