Actress Natasha Richardson was injured in a skiing accident

[pomtzu]

So very tragic indeed.

Peace to Natasha, and to all of her family and friends during this very difficult time.

[happylabs]

Very shocking that she has passed. She was such a beautiful woman and a very talented actress. Her family must be devastated. I am sure she is an angel in heaven now.

[Marigold2]

Oh Mary I am so sorry. Glad you are ok, yes you are ok.

When I fell down just a few steps at the age of 3 and hit my head, it appeared that I was ok, too. It wasn't until a month later that I developed symptoms but by then the damage had been done. As a result of the head trauma, I had developed a blood clot on the brain, had a stroke on the operating table which caused paralysis on my left side and I had to learn to walk and talk all over again. I had grand mal seizures for years after that. I'm ok now (some would disagree, LOL) but a head injury needs to be closely monitored for a good while. My prayers certainly are w/her and her family. How devastating.

[moosmom]

News reports say she was on the bunny slope!!! They should make a helmet law for beginner skiers.

Such a sad loss.

[Catty1]

Donna, she apparently refused a helmet, as well as immediate medical attention. An adult can do that, under law. So preventable, and so tragic.

[RICHARD]

One of the things that makes me curious about the whole incident is what part of the head she hit and what she hit, I know it was snow/ice, but it's very interesting that they reported it as a not-so-serious fall.

[caseysmom]

I was thinking the same thing Richard, its pretty scary. A few years ago there was a case in town at a basketball game where two guys got in a fist fight and one fell down and hit his head and died, just from a fall...its scary as hell.

[lvpets2002]

I know.. They have not gotten into details.. You know she refused the ambulance at first & she said she was fine.. It was later that she didnt feel good & then went into the Coma.. I will bet she hit her Temple on the side of the head & caused internal head bleeding.. So So Sad.. RIP Natasha.. Prayers for the Family & may God be with Them..

One of the things that makes me curious about the whole incident is what part of the head she hit and what she hit, I know it was snow/ice, but it's very interesting that they reported it as a not-so-serious fall.

[Catty1]

Some of the nitty gritty on head injuries, even when the skull stays intact:

http://health.lifestyle.yahoo.ca/cha...ation_id=35177

Dr. Cameron Guest, an intensive care physician at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto, said the apparent progression of Richardson's symptoms are typical of an extradural, or epidural, hematoma.

"This is the kind of injury that can do that sort of thing, where bleeding from an injury to an artery inside the skull leads to compression of the brain," he said. "If blood accumulates inside the skull, because it's a hard space, it can't expand and the brain gets compressed."

Tator said that when blood collects or clots inside the skull, pressure builds up and pushes the brain downward. Unless this aggregation of blood is removed and the pressure released through surgery, the brain stem can become compressed.

"And that's when the serious, generally irreversible damage occurs," Tator said. "So if there has been damage to the brain stem, those people generally don't wake up. They either die or remain in a vegetative state."

According to reports, Richardson appears to have had a period of "lucidity" between her fall and the onset of symptoms. If she then lost consciousness, that interval would have raised a red flag for doctors about the potential course of her condition.

"If they (patients) become comatose after this lucid interval, then you're on a sliding scale of who's going to wake up and who isn't going to wake up from this type of injury," Tator said.

In other words, time is of the essence, he said, noting that the relative closeness of Mont Tremblant to Montreal hospitals with experienced neurosurgeons could have been one factor in Richardson's favour.

That poor family....

[Medusa]

Some of the nitty gritty on head injuries, even when the skull stays intact:

http://health.lifestyle.yahoo.ca/cha...ation_id=35177






That poor family....

This surgery is exactly the kind that I underwent. A hole was drilled in the base of my skull to relieve the pressure. Ultimately, it worked but I sure had a lot of problems until I saw improvement. I was only 3 years old so I had youth on my side. Perhaps she wouldn't have been so fortunate. I don't know; I'm just speculating.

[RICHARD]

I was thinking the same thing Richard, its pretty scary. A few years ago there was a case in town at a basketball game where two guys got in a fist fight and one fell down and hit his head and died, just from a fall...its scary as hell.

The same with chest trauma, do you remember a few years ago the kid that was killed when he was hit in the chest with a baseball?

Indeed, it's scary to know that a really freak accident can be so devastating!

[pomtzu]

It wouldn't take much of a blow to any part of the head to cause a brain whiplash and bleed. It's amazing how fragile the head and neck really are.

I sneezed and broke my neck, and came within ml of being quadriplegic - or dead. I was fortunate tho - I had 3 major surgeries within a span of 6 months, have titanium rods to hold my vertebrae stable from the base of my skull to between my shoulder blades, was in a neck brace for months, went thru many months of therapy to learn how to walk again, yet still have lasting adverse effects from the whole ordeal. But I'm alive, and it sure beats the alternative! I never would have imagined something so life threatening could happened from something so simple as a sneeze.

I absolutely cringe when I watch the abuse to the head and neck that football players take. Even with their head and neck protection, I'm amazed that there aren't more serious injuries - something I never gave a thought to before my mishap.

Head and neck injuries are definitely nothing to take lightly. What a shame that Natasha didn't seek medical help immediately, even tho she said she was okay. It just may have saved her life.

[Catty1]

Autopsy results


Full Article Here: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/cbc/09031...tasha_reaction

Richardson death ruled accident following 'blunt impact to head'

Thu Mar 19, 12:32 PM

SASKATCHEWAN (CBC) - British actress Natasha Richardson's death this week was caused by a blunt impact to the head, according to the New York City medical examiner's office.
ADVERTISEMENT

The agency conducted an autopsy on the actress, who died Wednesday after falling while at Quebec's Mont Tremblant ski resort two days earlier.

Ellen Borakove, a spokeswoman for the office, said Thursday the death was ruled an accident, and the cause of death was an "epidural hematoma due to blunt impact to the head."

An epidural hematoma is a blood clot under the skull caused by a blow to the brain.

The prominent actress sustained what initially appeared to be a benign fall during a private ski lesson on a beginner's slope at Quebec's Mont Tremblant ski resort on Monday afternoon. Though at first she appeared fine, about an hour later Richardson complained of feeling unwell. She was transported to a local hospital by ambulance first before later being transferred to Montreal, where her husband, actor Liam Neeson who had been on a film set in Toronto joined her.

On Tuesday, Richardson was airlifted to New York, where the couple lived with their sons, Micheal and Daniel.

[carole]

How terribly sad and shocking, RIP Natasha, may her family and children find some comfort at this awful time in their lives.

[RICHARD]

And epidural hematoma is a 'bruise' to the surface of the brain. It bleeds and cause the brain to get squeezed in the skull, a subdrual hematoma is an injury to the brain deeper inside.

If she had gone to see a doc they may have had a chance to save her life. Too bad she decided to refuse treatment.