LA JOLLA, Calif. -- Nearly one in 50 people are living with paralysis. Some are unable to move their arms, their feet, their hands, or their heads. It can happen in a matter of seconds, but one doctor was able to reverse paralysis and get one man back on his feet.

"It was just like somebody took a tarp from the bottom of my neck and just peeled it back and took all the feeling from me, " said John Miksa, former paralysis sufferer.

John was wrapping up a 22-mile bike ride when tragedy struck. He was hit head-on by a driver. The motorist, making an impulse turn, had slammed into him.

"So I’m lying there, and I’m thinking of all the things I am not going to be able to do. I’m not going to be able to golf. I am not going to be able to make love. I am not going to be able to hug my grandchildren. I am not going to be able to do any of these things," John said.

A disk between C-5 and C-6 smashed into John's spinal cord.

"He had 100 percent, total paralysis from the neck down. He lost all function. He couldn’t move a muscle, not his arm, not a toe, not a flicker, nothing at all," Scott Leary, M.D., a Scripps Health Neurosurgeon in La Jolla, CA said.

Instead of waiting, Dr. Leary rushed him into the operating room at Scripps Memorial Hospital. In a very delicate and tedious surgery, he removed the disc rupture from where it was pinching his spinal cord, all the fragments, and fused the bones together. With each step, no one knew if John would be able to walk again.

“I’m getting chills just thinking about it. The first day that I went to see him in the SICU was probably one of the single most rewarding days of my entire career as a neurosurgeon. Seeing him move his toes and wiggle his fingers…I just had the greatest feeling," Dr. Leary said.

Just hours after surgery, John had signs of movement in his hands and feet.

"I was given less than a one percent chance of a full recovery before surgery. Less than one percent chance of a full recovery, and I have already moved something," John said.

A few days after surgery, John could stand up. Twenty-one days later, he was walking.

“I had a neck brace on, and I walked out on my own," John stated.

Physically, he was healing. Mentally, the wounds were still raw.

"It took time for me to believe that I could ride in a bike lane, ride in a park, and not get hit by a car,” John explained.

It was a test of courage for John, and his wife.

“It was a very tough day, but I knew he wanted to do it, and I also knew he had a new appreciation for cars.” Sheri Miksa, John’s wife said.

One year later, almost to the day he entered rehab, John and the people who helped him walk again took to the streets in celebration.

"Every day, I wake up and check to see if I’m paralyzed and I’m not. Every day I wake up, and I thank God, and I say, this is another bonus day for me," John concluded.

Doctor Leary says timing was everything. Traditionally, spinal surgery in the setting of spinal shock is extremely risky and is not done for days after an injury. He says if he would have waited to operate, John would not have walked again.

From Paralyzed To Walking! -- Research Summary

BACKGROUND: Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is damage to the spinal cord that causes a person to experience partial or total loss of muscle and sensory functions. The spinal cord does not have to be severed in order for paralysis to occur. The location of the injury dictates what muscle and sensory functions are affected, and to what degree they are affected. About 10,000 people in the U.S. injure their spinal cords each year. (SOURCE: www.hmc.psu.edu)

SYMPTOMS: A person's ability to control their limbs after a spinal cord injury depends on the neurological level and the completeness. A person who experiences complete paralysis (nearly 50 percent of SCI patients) will have lost all sensory feelings and motor functions below the neurological level. A person with incomplete paralysis still has some ability to control their movements. Other body functions, like bladder control, can also be affected. The symptoms could become progressively worse if untreated. (SOURCE: www.mayoclinic.com)

DIAGNOSIS: Spinal cord injuries are not always obvious, because the numbness and paralysis may not happen right away. The time between the injury and treatment can be critical in determining the complications and chances of full recovery. Doctors often use X-rays, CT scans and MRI scans to pinpoint the location and assess the extent of damage. If a spinal injury is suspected, immediate immobilization followed by these tests can help decrease the chances of lasting damage. (SOURCE: www.spineuniverse.com)

TREATMENT: Patients have a better chance at full recovery if the treatment comes within eight hours of injury. When injury occurs, the spinal cord typically responds by swelling. Medical personnel will usually administer steroid drugs, to reduce inflammation in the injured area and to prevent further damage to cellular membranes that can cause nerve death. If surgery cannot reverse the damage to the spinal cord, doctors may still recommend it to stabilize the spine to prevent future pain or deformity. (SOURCE: www.medicinenet.com)

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Scott Leary, M.D.
Scripps Health
(858) 810-0386
DrScottLeary.com