Update on Mallory

Here's an update on Mallory from a member of her church:

"Mallory got out of surgery about 9:00 last night. The doctor said the fracture was worse than he expected, but not unusual as they can't see everything on the MRI. He removed the 5th & 6th vertebrae and replaced with what hecalled a "cage" made out of carbon. They filled the inside of the cage with her own bone and some cadaver bone, then attached it to the 4th & 7th vertebrae with plates and screws.

There was lots of bleeding, but he said that was to be expected. They will keep a very close watch on that tomorrow. He said it was really a mess in there, but that it is always worse than it looks on an MRI, so that wasn't a shock to him. The good news is that there was no spinal fluid leakage. There was a fracture in her lower back, but he said that should heal on its own. If not, and if she complains with pain, they will put a soft brace on it. They will try to sit her up today.

The disappointing news he said was that the electrode test did not detect any nerve sensation to speak of. That sounds and is bad, but he stressed that he had had patients make a lot of progress when the swelling goes down. Sherri said he stressed over and over that this is where their faith and prayers come in. She said he was the kindest, most compassionate doctor (Dr. Ali Raja). What a blessing to have someone like that! Thank you, Lord! Mal does have good shoulder movement, but minimal hand and arm control at this point. We pray that improves."

Again, thank you for your prayers for Mallory...I'll keep you updated as I hear more.