Travis has been undergoing surgery for must of the day to remove the
shattered bone fragments from his neck and to place a bone graft into
the damaged area in the hopes of regenrating protective bone around
the spinal cord.  The last udate I heard at 3:30 was that he was
still in surgery.
 
I also called the BU hockey office and asked about an address that
letters and cards for Travis can be sent to.  If you would like to
write to Travis, the address is:
 
Travis Roy
Boston University Medical Center
SICU, Artuim 3 West
88 East Newton Street
Boston, MA  02118
 
In reply to Jason Cote's post:
 
> Roy crushed the C4 vertebrae, this means not only will he be a quad,
> but since the C4 is the location of the respiratory control center,
> Roy will likely be on a respirator for the rest of his life.
 
Travis is and has been breathing on his own his the injury.  Dr.
Schepsis was asked that question and answered that he never stopped
breathing.  Travis also talked to both his father and coach Parker,
both on the ice and at the hospital.  At the hospital Travis was
placed on a respirator as a precautionary measure.
 
The Boston Sunday Globe and a lengthy article in which the reporter
specifically mentioned that Travis was luckier than Christopher
Reeve.  According to the article, Christopher Reeve's spinal cord was
injuried between his first two vertebrae, causing him to lose control
of his phrenic nerve, which controls the diaphragm and lungs.  The
article continued that Travis shattered his fourth vertebra, which is
below the phrenic nerve, leaving him the ability to breath relatively
unimpared.
 
As for the chance of a complete recovery, all the doctors continue to
say that there is only a very slighty possibility of that occuring.
Travis' father has already said that the family is expecting and
preparing for the worst, which is Travis will be a quadriplegic.
 
 
 
 
Sean Pickett            E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Go Terriers  1995 NCAA, Hockey East and Beanpot Champions
BU Hockey:  http://www.tiac.net/users/spickett/hockey.html
 
HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey;  send information to
[log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.