Teenager Aliza Rae AliKhan and her family were told to “prepare for the worst” when she was rushed for emergency spinal surgery after her horse fell on top of her.
The 13-year-old was described by doctors as being “broken in half” in the accident when the horse became spooked.
She was told that she might never walk again, but has now made an “amazing” recovery by walking out of hospital unaided seven months on. Not only that, but Aliza Rae is back at school and even riding again.
At the time, medics warned Aliza Rae's parents “to prepare for the worst” because of the severity of her injuries.
Evan Davies, consultant spinal surgeon at Southampton Children’s Hospital in southern England, explained the emergency operation involved stabilising her spine with metal rods and removing fractured bone to reduce pressure on the spinal canal.
He said: “When Aliza Rae arrived in the hospital, she was, for use of a better word, broken in half – her top half wasn’t connected to the bottom half. I was concerned that the damage had already been done, and my first thought was that this girl might never walk again.”
Aliza Rae's mother Thirza AliKhan, from Dorset, south-west England, said: “It was a long day, a day I will never forget. We didn’t know what was going to happen and I suppose it didn’t really hit us until the next morning.
“We just needed to stay positive for the sake of Aliza Rae. She was conscious and she was talking, so we just focused on that and went from there.
“We didn’t know what the future would hold, but we knew we were in the best hands and Aliza Rae just kept focusing on what she could do, not what she couldn’t.”
A further operation was carried out to remove small pieces of bone spotted in a follow-up X-ray.
“This was a more complex procedure, as we had to access the spine through her chest and abdomen to remove the damaged vertebrae and insert screws into her bone,” Mr Davies explained.
“The vertebrae were then replaced with an expanding cage, to hold the spine in place while it healed. The surgery was a success, but we had no idea if this would mean Aliza Rae would ever walk again.”
Aliza Rae was transferred to the paediatric intensive care unit where her bespoke rehabilitation regime began within 48 hours of her surgery, led by the Southampton Children’s Integrated Rehabilitation Team.
She left the hospital just after her 13th birthday and returned to Hanford Prep school, in Hanford in Dorset, where she is preparing for exams and planning a fund-raising event for the hospital.
“I want to give something back to everyone that looked after me. I remember being told I might never walk again, but I had this amazing team, my dream team, and they never gave up on me,” said Aliza Rae.
“They became like friends, not just doctors and physios. They helped me believe in myself.”
Her mother added: “The team were amazing from day one. Positive, supportive and really connected with Aliza Rae – they had the right balance of pushing her and knowing when it was too much.
“We’ll forever be grateful for everything that everyone at SCH has done for Aliza Rae.”
