Former adult film star Emily Willis is facing a bleak future as doctors fear she may be suffering from "locked-in syndrome" and might never move again, according to medical experts.
In May, Emily's distressing situation was revealed after her family confirmed that she had come out of a "vegetative coma" induced by a cardiac arrest in February. On February 5, Emily was rushed to a hospital in Thousand Oaks, California , after becoming seriously ill.
She slipped into a coma but has since woken up from it.
Despite regaining consciousness, Emily remains unable to speak and can only track objects with her eyes, as the latest GoFundMe update indicates. Dr Gareth Nye, Programme Lead for Medical Science at the University of Chester, has provided insight into Emily's current mysterious condition.
Dr Nye explained that while it's unclear what caused her sudden illness, the path to recovery after such a "traumatic event such as this and recovery from a coma is even more difficult" and emerging from a coma is incredibly challenging, reports the Mirror .
Speaking to the Daily Star, Dr Nye said: "What we are seeing here is the damage to the brain following a lack of oxygen after the cardiac arrest," adding, "It is encouraging to see that she seems to be conscious, recognises people and can track with her eyes. However, it is highly likely she is suffering from a condition called locked-in syndrome."
A doctor has revealed the unsettling reality of locked-in syndrome, where patients are trapped within their bodies, fully awake but unable to move or speakexcept through eye movements. "Locked-in syndrome is a condition caused by a lack of oxygen to the brain stem which is a crucial portion of our brain," explained Dr Nye.
"All communication to and from the brain for example movement, bodily functions etc run through the brain steam first so any damage here is devastating for the individual."
"Locked-in syndrome is essentially where a patient is aware of their surroundings and have full consciousness but cannot move or communicate verbally due to complete paralysis of nearly all voluntary muscles in the body, except for vertical eye movements and blinking. Some patients do retain some facial muscle movement and may retain some sensation in their limbs but crucially have no movement at all below the neck."
Regarding Emily, who had shown the ability to track with her eyes as of May, Dr Nye commented that should she remain conscious, the inability to touch or communicate with loved ones would be an "awful experience".
Furthermore, Dr Nye mentioned that although a select few with locked-in syndrome might blink or move their eyes to convey messages, almost all "regain no control of their muscles".
He observed: "She may never recover past this stage and that is the more likely outcome. Being able to fully move and gain normality is extremely unlikely and would take years of intensive work to make any progress. It all depends on her specific damage. There are some very exceptional cases which have seen patients go on to make a recovery."
Emily's stepdad, Michael Willis, confirmed in March that Emily had been in rehab for eight days prior to enduring a cardiac arrest while in treatment, as TMZ reported. Police initially suspected an overdose, but Michael clarified that doctors said the preliminary toxicology screen was negative.
Michael revealed to the news outlet that upon checking herself into the center, Emily was just 80 pounds in weight, which raised concern, although it's unclear whether it contributed to her critical condition.
Furthermore, he commented that Emily was resolute in regaining her health and "very open" about seeking help for her "substance abuse problem". Near $90,000 has been raised through a GoFundMe established by Emily's relatives for her medical expenses.
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