Unlike how it is shown in many movies and TV shows, coma is a serious condition. Most people who fall into a coma stay in it for several weeks, but there are cases when a person is stuck in this state for many months and even years. How longer man is in a coma, the less likely it is that he will get out of it. And although the time spent in a coma may vary, the stories of many people who have gone through this ordeal are especially noteworthy.

10. Sam Carter

In 2008, 60-year-old Sam Carter fell into a coma due to severe anemia. He remained in this state for three days. Saved by his wife, who decided to include in his room the song "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones. To everyone's surprise, as soon as the song sounded, Sam came to his senses. According to him, she gave him strength. This song was very special to him, it was the first single he bought at the age of 17.

9. Sarah Thomson


In 2012, 32-year-old Sarah Thomson found herself in a coma after a blood clot entered her brain. She remained in this state for 10 days. When she came to, it seemed to Sarah that it was 1998, and she herself was 19 years old. She did not recognize her children and husband (who came into her life later) and thought she was dating another person. Fortunately, everything ended well, and after a while Sarah fell in love with her husband again.

8. Ben McMahon, Sandra Ralich and Michael Botwright


Australian Ben McMahon was in a car accident in 2012, as a result of which he spent about a week in a coma. Shortly before that, he had been studying Chinese and French, although he still could not communicate freely on them. To the surprise of those around him, when he came to, Ben spoke in Chinese. It was the only language he could communicate in. A few years later, English returned to him. Now Ben lives in Shanghai, where he spends a lot of time on local TV shows. Oddly enough, but Ben is not the only one with whom this happened. 13-year-old Sandra Ralich from Croatia was studying German when fate sent her into a 24-hour coma. Returning to life, the girl understood and spoke only German. Michael Botwright became the third person to experience this effect. After coming out of the coma, he began to speak Swedish and claimed that his real name was Johan Ek. A few years ago he lived in Sweden, but then moved back to California forever.

7. Fred Hersh


Fred Hersh is a renowned and respected pianist who moved to New York in 1977 at the age of 21. In the 90s, he was diagnosed with AIDS, and in 2008 he fell into a coma due to mass rejection, where he stayed for two months. After coming out of a coma, he spent 10 months in bed, and then began to work on himself and even play the piano. By 2010, he was back on stage, and based on eight dreams he had while in a coma, he even wrote his own 90-minute concert called "My Coma Dreams".

6. Jarrett Carland


On August 16, 2009, 17-year-old Jarrett Carland was involved in a car accident that left him in a coma. The doctors' forecasts were the saddest, but his parents did not give up and even ordered a course of music therapy for their son. But the therapy was not quite ordinary, instead of the quiet and calm music that is usually played in such situations, Jarett's parents insisted that he play the songs of Charlie Daniels, country music legend. After 4 months in a coma, Jarrett began to react to music and eventually came out of the coma.

5. Jan Grzebski


In 1988, while working for railway, Jan Grzebski suffered a serious head injury. He spent 19 years in a coma under the vigilant attention and care of his wife. In the end, he came to his senses, and what was his shock when he learned that there was no more communism in Poland, and he himself already had 11 grandchildren!

4. Gary Dockery


On September 17, 1988, Gary Dockery was 33 years old when he and another Walden, Tennessee police officer went on a call. On that ill-fated day, Gary was shot in the head. To save Gary, doctors had to remove 20% of his brain. After the operation, Gary lay in a coma for seven years. He came to his senses when his family members, standing in his room, decided what to do with him next: continue to care for him or let him die.

3. Sarah Scantlin


In 1984, Sarah Scantlin was a popular and attractive college freshman. On September 21, she was hit by a car, Sarah was thrown to the side, her skull was crushed, then she was run over by another car. She was still alive when she was taken to the hospital with extensive head injuries. Sarah spent about a month in a coma. In April 1985, she was transferred to a care center for the disabled. All she could do was feed through a tube and blink. She spent 16 years in this state, after which one of the center's employees decided to help her learn to communicate. Four years of daily practice were not in vain, on January 12, 2005, Sarah was able to utter her first word since the disaster.

2. Terry Wallis


In July 1984, 19-year-old Terry Wallis fell into, as a result of which he was in a coma. His wife took care of him for 19 years. On June 11, 2003, Terry tried to speak for the first time since then. Gradually, he came to his senses, but he was sure that very little time had passed, and Ronald Reagan was now in power in the United States. Doctors still do not know why he came out of a coma. This is another one of the incomprehensible mysteries of human nature.

1. Haley Putre


From the age of 4, Hailey lived in her aunt's house, as her mother was deprived of parental rights. In 2005, when she was 11 years old, Hailey was hospitalized with multiple head injuries after being beaten by her foster parents. The injuries were too severe, and the girl fell into a coma. She remained in this state until 2008, when local authorities decided to disconnect her from the life support apparatus. On the same day, Hailey woke up.



Coma, coma (from Greek koma - deep dream, drowsiness) is a life-threatening condition characterized by loss of consciousness, a sharp weakening or lack of response to external stimuli, the extinction of reflexes until they disappear completely, a violation of the depth and frequency of breathing, a change in vascular tone, an increase or slowdown in the pulse, a violation of temperature regulation.

Coma develops as a result of deep inhibition in the cerebral cortex with its spread to the subcortex and underlying parts of the central nervous system due to acute circulatory disorders in the brain, head injuries, inflammation (with encephalitis, meningitis, malaria), as well as as a result of poisoning (barbiturates, carbon monoxide, etc.), with diabetes, uremia, hepatitis. In this case, there are violations of the acid-base balance in the nervous tissue, oxygen starvation, ion exchange disorders and energy starvation of nerve cells.

Coma is preceded by a pre-coma, during which the development of these symptoms occurs.

The coma lasts from several hours to several days, less often - more; in this it differs from fainting, which does not last long (from 1 to 15 minutes) and, as a rule, is caused by sudden anemia of the brain.

It is often difficult to identify the cause of a coma. Importance has a rate of disease progression. The sudden development of coma is characteristic of vascular disorders (cerebral stroke). Relatively slowly, a coma develops with brain damage of an infectious nature. Symptoms of a coma with endogenous intoxications increase much more slowly - diabetic, hepatic, renal coma.

The exit from a coma under the influence of treatment is characterized by a gradual restoration of the functions of the central nervous system, usually in the reverse order of their oppression. At first, corneal (corneal) reflexes appear, then pupillary reflexes, the degree of vegetative disorders decreases. Restoration of consciousness passes through the stages of stupor, confused consciousness, delirium, hallucinations are sometimes noted. Often, during the period of coming out of a coma, there is a sharp motor restlessness with chaotic discoordinated movements against the background of a stunned state; convulsive seizures are possible, followed by a twilight state.

Cases of coming out of a coma after long stay.

IN June 2003 39-year-old US resident Terry Wallis came to his senses after being in a coma for 19 years. Terry Wallis fell into a coma after a car accident in July 1984 when he was 19 years old. All these years, Terry Wallis was under the supervision of doctors from rehabilitation center Stone County. In 2001, he began to communicate with relatives and hospital staff using elementary signs, and on June 13, 2003, he spoke for the first time. Terry Wallis is paralyzed and uses a wheelchair.

In 2006, Terry Wallis still needed help eating, but his speech continued to improve and he could consistently count to 25.

IN June 2003 Chinese woman Jin Meihua woke up from a coma in which she had been for the past four and a half years. She suffered a severe brain injury after falling off her bike. Due to the severity of the injuries, the doctors did not have high hopes for Jean's cure. All these years, her husband was next to Jin Meihua, caring for and caring for his wife.

January 21, 2004 The media reported that a patient, who had been in a coma for a year and a half, regained consciousness in the As-Salam International Hospital in Cairo. A 25-year-old Syrian was in a car accident in Lebanon in 2002. He fell into a coma from severe head injuries, his heart stopped several times, the patient was connected to an artificial respiration unit. He was first treated at an American hospital in Beirut, and then he was transferred to Cairo, where he underwent a series of neurosurgical operations. Having regained consciousness, the Syrian was able to move his arms and stand, understand speech and began to try to speak himself. This is a very rare case in medical practice, when a patient with such severe injuries survived a long coma and came to his senses.

IN April 2005 American firefighter 43 year old Don Herbert(Don Herbert) came out of a 10-year coma. Herbert fell into a coma in 1995. While extinguishing the fire, the roof of the burning building collapsed on it. After the oxygen in the breathing apparatus ran out, Herbert spent 12 minutes under the rubble without air, as a result of which a coma ensued. In February 2006, Don Herbert died of pneumonia.

June 2, 2007 the media reported that a resident of Poland is a 65-year-old railway worker Jan Grzebski(Jan Grzebski) has woken up after being in a coma for 19 years. In 1988, Grzebski was seriously injured in a railway accident. According to doctors, he had no more than three years to live. In the same year, the 46-year-old Pole fell into a coma. For 19 years, Grzebski's wife was at her husband's bedside every hour, changing the position of his body every hour to avoid muscle atrophy and the spread of infections. Having regained consciousness, the Pole learned that now all of his four children were married and married, and that he now has 11 granddaughters and grandchildren.

In Miami, a 59-year-old woman died, who spent almost her entire adult life in an unconscious state. It's about about Edward O'Bara, who was once nicknamed "Sleeping Snow White" by the media.

At the age of 16, O'Bara fell into a diabetic coma and hasn't "woken up" for 42 years since. It is noteworthy that Eduarda's eyes were constantly open, but there was no consciousness: she did not hear others, did not see them and was unable to perceive them in any way. the world.

Last words O'Bara before the coma, there was a request to the mother. "Promise you won't leave me," said the girl. And her mother remembered her request for the rest of her life.

Kay O'Bara spent the next 35 years at her daughter's bedside, regularly arranging her birthdays, caring for her and leaving at a time for 90 minutes to sleep or take a shower.

In 2008, the mother died at the age of 80. And Edward's sister began to fulfill her promise. It was she who caught the death of Sleeping Snow White. "Eduarda just closed her eyes and went to heaven with my mommy," said Colleen O'Bara.

According to her, Eduarda was not only “the best sister imaginable”, but also taught the woman a lot without even contacting her. "It's really great," she concluded.

Coma is considered one of the most difficult and unpredictable conditions for patients and physicians. The subject of coma attracts fans of mysticism, as there are many fascinating stories of people who have experienced this state.

Some former patients claim that they saw the tunnel and the light, contemplated their own physical body from the outside, etc. Of particular interest is the exceptional case, which includes most long stay in a coma in the world. To understand how this is possible, you need to know what a coma is.

Characteristics of a coma

The word "coma" in Greek means "deep sleep". If a person is completely unconscious due to a pathological condition that is characterized by the maximum degree of CNS depression, then doctors diagnose a coma. However, it cannot be called a disease. It occurs as a result of a head injury or is a complication of any disease. The longest stay in a coma in the world lasted more than 37 years. Documents confirm this.

What is a coma

Doctors distinguish between somnolence and wakeful coma. The first is characterized by the clouded consciousness of a person who is in a state of constant drowsiness. In the second type of coma, the patient experiences complete apathy and indifference to everything, retaining an autopsychic orientation.

Experts say that a coma cannot last more than a month. The body then enters the vegetative stage. Simply put, in a month a person exists like a plant. His vital functions are preserved, but mental activity is completely absent. And this situation can persist for years. In a coma, metabolic processes change in the body, one of which is concomitant encephalopathy.

The duration of the coma depends on the severity of the brain damage. The longer the coma lasts, the less chance a person has of “returning” to this world, and the more real it becomes death. If 6 hours have already passed after falling into a coma, and the patient's pupils do not respond to a beam of light, then this is a very formidable symptom. Doctors say that in this case, a person may experience brain death. He is no longer able to perform any functions, and recovery is impossible, since the brain tissue is destroyed.

Therefore, people who have been in a coma for a long time do not return to normal life. A vivid example is the longest stay in a coma in the world, which lasted 37 years and 111 days. American Elaine Esposito (Tarpon Springs) fell into a coma at the age of 6 years. She underwent an operation to remove her appendicitis, after which she no longer regained consciousness (1941). prolonged coma ended in death when the woman was 43 years old.

If a person wakes up after a coma, then he goes through a long recovery period, which sometimes takes years. Those who have fallen into a coma have a special diet, and some cannot breathe on their own. Therefore, they cannot do without medical help, even after improving their health.

Causes of coma

The longest stay in a coma in the world is simply impossible to explain from a medical point of view. Doctors do not know why some patients do not recover for many years. There are more than 500 causes of coma. But most often it develops due to a violation of blood circulation in the brain (stroke).

Coma can occur after a traumatic brain injury or poisoning. But any coma lasts no more than 4 weeks. What happens to a person after this period is not actually a coma. If the patient does not recover, then he goes into a vegetative state. The longer a person is in a coma, the less likely he is to have a positive outcome. Man-made coma is general anesthesia. This is a manageable condition, however, in some cases there are complications.

Coma is an ordeal

It is difficult not only for the patient himself, but also for his relatives. In the cinema, patients are often shown in a coma. However, on the screen, everything looks different. In reality, without the active help and support of loved ones, without careful care, a person has almost no chance of recovery.

One of the main consequences of a coma is a deterioration in the quality of thinking, memory, as well as changes in behavior. A person may partially lose his previous skills, ability to work and behave in such a way that his relatives practically do not recognize him. The extent of the loss depends on how long the patient has been in the coma. For some people, normal speech is restored only after a few months.

The longest stay in a coma in the world fixed in Miami. The woman spent almost her entire life in a coma. She died at the age of 59 without regaining consciousness. This is Edward O'Bar, who was dubbed "Sleeping Snow White" by the media in the past. She was 16 when she went into a diabetic coma. Edward did not regain consciousness for 42 years! Interestingly, she did not close her eyes. They were constantly open, but there was no consciousness. The woman did not see, did not hear or perceive anything.

Before the coma, she asked her mother not to leave her. The mother kept her promise and took care of her daughter for the rest of her life - 35 years. After her mother's death, her sister took care of Eduarda. She witnessed the departure of "Sleeping Snow White" to another world. At the time of Edward's death, she closed her eyes.

Curious fact

Experts have repeatedly tried to find out what caused the longest stay in a coma in the world. To this end, a study was conducted in which doctors from the UK and Belgium managed to establish contact with a patient who had been in a coma for 10 years. Scott Routley from Canada fell into a coma after suffering a head injury in a car accident. With the help of magnetic resonance imaging, specialists were able to get answers from him to their questions: “Are you in pain?”, “Are you scared?” and others. They recorded the answers in the form of bursts of brain activity.

Israeli doctors medical center Shiba on September 3 were reminded of the existence of a person whom even many journalists and experts on international relations believed to be long dead.

Alive no matter what

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon successfully underwent elective surgery to replace the artificial feeding tube. Doctors noted that there were no changes in Sharon's condition.

major changes in condition former head there has been no government for seven and a half years. In December 2005, one of the most active Middle Eastern politicians suffered a minor stroke, and in early January 2006, a massive stroke. The consequence of this was a deep coma, in which Sharon remains to this day.

After one hundred days of being in a coma, Ariel Sharon, in accordance with the laws of Israel, was declared incompetent, having lost the post of prime minister. From that moment on, there were fewer and fewer reports about Sharon in the media, as well as hopes that the politician would someday return to normal life.

However, the body of a former military man, whose ancestors come from Russian Empire turned out to be strong enough. Seven and a half years later, Sharon, who turned 85 in February 2013, is still on the thin line between life and death. In 2011, one of the doctors treating Sharon stated that his patient is able to feel pinches and also opens his eyes when spoken to. However, no further progress was noted in the state of the ex-premier.

To the question "How long can this go on?" doctors can not give an exact answer. History knows examples when a person in a state of coma spent not even years, but whole decades.

Eternity on the threshold of eternity

In December 1969, the 16-year-old American Edward O'Bar, an exemplary student who dreamed of becoming a pediatrician, fell ill with pneumonia. Her condition was complicated by diabetes, which the girl suffered from. In January 1970, Eduarda fell into a diabetic coma. The last thing she managed to ask her mother was never to leave her.

The parents did not leave their daughter. Despite the fact that the doctors' prognosis was negative, they took care of her, carrying out the necessary medical procedures. The treatment of the girl was very expensive, her father, Joe, had to work three jobs to save the life of her child. Such loads were not in vain - Joe O'Bara suffered heart attack and died in 1975. Edward's mother Catherine, never abandoned her daughter, continuing to care for her until her death in 2008. By that time, the debts of the O'Bar family had exceeded 200 thousand dollars.

The fate of Eduarda and her family was known all over the world. Celebrities have visited Pope wrote letters of comfort to her mother.

IN last years her sister took care of Edward Colin.

Edward O'Bar passed away on January 21, 2012. Of the 59 years of her life, she spent 42 years in a coma - more than anyone in history.

Grew up but didn't wake up

Before Eduarda, she was considered a record holder Chicago resident Elaine Esposito, whose story is no less sad than the story of her sister in misfortune. In 1941, daughters Louis And Lucy Esposito Elaine is six years old. She grew up an ordinary child until the girls had an attack of appendicitis. While Elaine was preparing for the operation, the appendix ruptured, that is, peritonitis began.

Operation under general anesthesia was successful, but suddenly the girl's temperature rose sharply to 42 degrees, convulsions began. The doctors were preparing their parents for the worst, fearing that Elaine would not survive the coming night.

The girl, however, survived, but fell into a coma. After nine months of treatment in the hospital, during which Elaine never returned to normal life, her mother took her daughter home. Then there were years of selfless struggle of relatives for the return of Elaine from a coma. The girl grew up, matured, still remaining between life and death. Without leaving the coma, she contracted pneumonia and measles. At times it seemed that Elaine was on the verge of being released from her comatose captivity, her eyes even opened. Alas, the miracle did not happen - on November 25, 1978, 43-year-old Elaine Esposito died after spending 37 years and 111 days in a coma.

Grandfather returned to grandchildren

However, sometimes miracles do happen. In 1995, a 33-year-old American fireman Don Herbert was working on extinguishing the building, and the roof collapsed on it. The oxygen in the breathing apparatus ended, and the man spent 12 minutes without air, falling into a coma. He came back to life 10 years later. This happened after the doctors changed the medicines used to treat the patient. Alas, poor health has made new life Herbert short - in 2006 he died of pneumonia.

In July 1984, 19-year-old American Terry Wallis got into a car accident, as a result of which he fell into a coma. After 17 years, in 2001, Terry began to communicate with staff and relatives using signs, and in 2003, 19 years after falling into a coma, he spoke for the first time. By 2006, Wallis had learned to speak clearly and count to 25.

Polish life railway worker Jan Grzebski was common until 1988, when he was seriously injured in an accident. Doctors gave pessimistic forecasts - if a 46-year-old man gets out, then he will have no more than three years to live. Confirming the doctors' worst fears, Yang fell into a coma. The man's wife did not leave him, caring for and helping to perform medical procedures. So 19 years have passed. There was no progress in the state of the railway worker, and, finally, even the faithful wife gave in, who considered that she could devote the rest of her days to herself. It was at this moment that Jan Grzebik "emerged" from a coma. The 65-year-old man learned that in the intervening time his four children got married and got married, and he himself is now the grandfather of as many as 11 grandchildren.