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Scott Thorne Update 10/2

Oct- 2-2004 » Filed Under: Scott Thorne

Dear Friends,

Scott was transferred to Walter Reed today about noon. He was transported in a civilian ambulance by a driver who was obviously in no hurry to get him there. Once he arrived, Scott was put back up in the same ICU where he was before going to Bethesda. I had the impression they were very pleasantly surprised to see him back and a bit amazed at his progress. The vasospasm problem was apparently more serious than we knew, but that's fine with me. A little brute force and ignorance goes a long way in the Army. It's nice to see neurologists smiling and shaking their heads at the same time.

Scott had an assessment by one of the internal medicine doctors upon his arrival. I briefed him about the tests, medications (especially pain medications) and the outstanding physical therapist over at Bethesda. I also told him about the sport Scott had with the speech pathologists. He thought it was as funny as I did. We discussed the "brown out" theory and he said that was likely. He described the process from here, too. Scott will be moved to a lower level unit or even a ward as soon as tomorrow. The doctor told Scott that if he is motivated and "high speed" (an Army term for outstanding, highly motivated soldiers) then he would recover better than if he wasn't. Scott understood this and we all know how high speed he is.

The rehabilitation phase will begin after Scott is assessed by the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) team. There are three rehabilitation centers where Scott could eventually be sent; Florida (no thanks, after four hurricanes), Minnesota and Palo Alto, California (yup, you gotta have brains to go to Stanford!). In six months or when all the medical issues are resolved, Scott will be fitted with a patch (made of a polymer)for his skull. For now, though, he will be evaluated by the TBI and physical/speech/occupational therapy will begin. Scott will also be given a plastic helmet to wear while out of bed to protect his brain. This will be fitted on him Monday. Since Scott played football for 11 years and was in the Army for five years, helmets should be no big deal.

Later this evening a neurologist came by and tested Scott's senses and reflexes some more. He said there were some possible defects that may be permanent such as being able to write but not read or not being able to tell left from right or not being able to have peripheral vision on his right side. He also removed the sutures in his scalp and Scott felt somewhat better after this.
Scott watched TRON last night and Beetlejuice this evening on my portable DVD player. He was able to track along with the movies and laugh at the appropriate places. At times, it looked like he was going to fall asleep (that happened even before the injury), but he made it through both movies. He wants to watch TRON again tomorrow, but I'd like to wait until he gets to a regular ward. It's too hectic to try to watch a movie in the ICU!

Scott is truly improving daily and it's noticeable. He still has a long way to go, but even he recognized today that he's a lot better than before he left for Bethesda.

ST


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