Natasha Richardson's Lucid Interval Should Have Tipped Off Her Epidural Hematoma

After the tragic death of the beautiful stage and screen actress Natasha Richardson, millions of people likely Googled up her medical condition of an Epidural Hematosa--or, in simpler terms, a brain bleed from head trauma. Since this won't be a diatribe on that or laws being implemented to make wearing helmets a requirement for those who ski (something that will likely happen on its own now), it's instead a push to get the little-known term "lucid interval" better known for those who experience head traumas. It appears to be obvious that the family of Natasha Richardson wasn't aware of what a lucid interval is and why it's exactly what you need to look out for after you or someone you know bumps their head hard on any particular surface.

Of course, it's also a mystery why there wasn't a push to get Richardson into a hospital for observation, even though evidence exists she refused any help. You'll also likely see arguments that there was negligence on the part of the Quebec medical crew (yes, the French have been dogged before in lacking great medical care during emergencies) when they could have done more. Whatever truths lie within all the media rumors, the idea that we can be lucid a while after hitting our heads and then slip into a coma an hour or so later creates a new awareness for the world of just how fragile our heads are even in the simplest falls.

We're also reminded of how mysterious our brains are when that vital organ becomes injured. Why we'd experience a short period of lucidity after a head trauma and then slip into a coma is one of the most oddball aspects to medical science. It's right up there with the reported experience of creative brilliance right before or after seizures in some people with brain tumors or those prone to seizures. However, with a lucid interval happening after hitting one's head, it doesn't necessarily come on after being unconscious.

While most medical descriptions say that lucid intervals happen after being knocked cold, you only have to be a little dazed before experiencing a period of feeling lucid. Obviously, this is what happened to Natasha Richardson since there was no report she was unconscious first after falling. What makes this condition all the more significant is that Richardson apparently didn't hit her head on a tree as what, notoriously, killed Sonny Bono and Michael Kennedy back in the late 90's. Perhaps it was something as simple as a rock under the snow that Richardson hit--hence bringing on a fall equivalent to any we might have had in our lifetimes.

Undoubtedly most people probably didn't know before now that such a dramatic event could occur in our brain with such a simple fall. In the medical establishment, however, it's supposed to be fairly well known and puts focus back to where this happened up in Quebec, Canada. Is it possible that when you're in a foreign country, the awareness of a lucid interval isn't known well enough to be treated decently? Even though I don't believe in knocking the French as we once did in the Freedom Fries era earlier this decade, there isn't a doubt that the French have a bad reputation for fast emergency service if you just back up to 1997 during another tragic accident with a world-renowned notable whose life could have been saved...
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Most of the evidence that showed the French were lax in the immediate aftermath of Princess Diana's fatal car crash in 1997 appears to have been forgotten today. But despite some French medical personnel defending their actions later on, there seemed to be a lack of understanding in how internal bleeding needs to be treated as soon as possible or face the patient dying within hours. As we all recall, most other medical experts from other parts of the world said that Princess Diana could have been saved had she been rushed to the hospital in the first few minutes after medical help arrived to the crash scene.

Reportedly, someone in Natasha Richardson's entourage recommended she go to the hospital to be checked out--yet when medical help arrived, they were turned away. Since we'll likely never know what happened during that interval of time, it's hard to imagine Richardson refusing the service if they'd already arrived. In America, medical help would be adamant about providing help due to their (supposed) knowledge of lucid intervals after falls of that variety. The medical crew in Quebec should have insisted they transport Richardson to the hospital right away rather than turn around and leave.

Well, perhaps when a celebrity is adamant about refusing care, there isn't much you can do. It's happened before...without having to clear a throat and utter the name Elvis. Now, though, we have a major tragedy that's awakened us to how a simple blow to the head from any situation can lead to disaster if not checked out as soon as possible. And it's a shame there's added rumors Richardson may have had a precondition that caused her to fall in the first place. Unsubstantiated rumors like that takes away from the reality of how dangerous lucid intervals really are and the lack of understanding about them.

All of this brings a haunting reality to when people we thought were sick suddenly act exponentially better than they ever have. I always get scared when someone you know feels unusually good right after battling a major illness. Such dramatic shifts aren't normal and may just extend lucid intervals (plus the above-mentioned creative ecstasy during seizures) to other parts of the body where we experience a certain time frame of feeling good right before a major health event happens. Some of us have certainly seen it before in older people right before they die.

With Natasha Richardson now tragically and unknowingly sacrificing her life to help us become more medically aware, we can only hope that a lucid interval also leads to a peaceful unconsciousness afterward rather than any suffering. With a simple CT scan, though, and emergency surgery, her condition could have been repaired without brain damage.

Now when we fall down and hit our head on the floor or on the outdoor ground, it shouldn't be shunned when we call an ambulance or go to the ER to get a CT scan of our brain just to be sure. Many people just laugh at someone falling or take them as a trifle. We're reawakened now with the knowledge that our bodies can more often than not be as fragile as fine china...

Sources:

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2009/03/breaking-news-autopsy-shows-richardson-died-blunt-impact-head

http://rad.usuhs.edu/medpix/radpix.html?mode=single&comebackto=mode%3Dgeo_browse&recnum=1041