Student who woke up thinking she’d slept funny and had pins and needles was actually PARALYSED
Ece Ozcan, 19, had a rare condition called isthmic defect – which affects the spine – and had caused scoliosis and a hernia which pressed on her spinal cord leaving her paralysed
WHEN she woke up and couldn't feel her leg, Ece Ozcan thought she'd just slept in a funny position and was suffering a bout of pins and needles.
But, the feeling in her leg never returned, and the teenager was left devastated when doctors told her she would never walk again.
Now, the determined 19-year-old has defied the odds stacked up against her, and after life-changing spinal surgery she can walk again.
Ece, who lives in Egham, Surrey, was rushed to the hospital by her worried parents but medics were at a loss to treat her condition.
They discovered Ece had a rare condition called isthmic defect – which affects the spine – and had caused scoliosis and a hernia.
The hernia had pressed on nerves in her bent spine, squashing them and leaving her paralysed.
Doctors told Ece she would never walk again but the determined teen refused to accept their diagnosis and saw 10 doctors before she found one who would operate on her.
Two years and two operations later, Ece has defied the odds and is now back on her feet again.
The teenager said: “No one would ever think you could just become paralysed overnight.
“But one day I woke up, and I just couldn't feel my left leg.
“I thought it was pins and needles at first – I thought my leg was asleep because of the position I'd slept in, and the feeling would come back. But it never did.
No one would ever think you could just become paralysed overnight. But one day I woke up, and I just couldn’t feel my left leg
Ece Ozcan
“As time went on I still couldn't move my leg, but I started getting indescribable pain as well.
“It was agony.”
Although Ece was born with the condition, she had been unaware of it until the scoliosis and hernia developed when she was 17.
Even Ece's mother, who is a doctor, had never heard of the condition, and because it was so rare, no one knew how to help her.
But luckily, one of her mother's friends knew a doctor who was an expert on the condition and he agreed to operate on her.
Ece, who is from Turkey but studies management and mathematics at Royal Holloway University, said: “All of the doctors I saw said there was no chance of walking again.
“I remember word-for-word what my first doctor said, ‘look Ece, if I were you I wouldn't think about walking again. The numbness in your legs is probably permanent'.
“When they told me that I refused to accept it was true – I had holidays planned, I had exams, there was no way I could be like this forever.
“I was crushed, how was I going to live my life, my dreams?
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“My days were now filled with injections, pills, MRIs, x-rays and a miserable pain.
“I cried for hours and hours, but I was determined to prove them wrong.
“My mother's best friend knew a doctor who was an expert in the condition, and I was able to get a fast-track appointment to see him – he was so positive, he told me not to be scared - and it gave me hope.”
Isthmic Defect
What is Isthmic defect?
It a condition in which the there is a defect in a portion of the spine called the pars interarticularis.
The condition occurs when one vertebral body slips forward onto the one below it. It is due to a small fracture in the piece of bone that connects the two joints.
While the fracture usually happens when the patient is young, symptoms typically don’t develop until adulthood.
It occurs most commonly in the L5-S1 level of the spine, the lowest level of the lumbar spine. It can happen above this level, at L4-L5 or L3-L4, although that is rare and at these levels trauma, rather than cumulative stress, is a more common cause of the fracture.
What are the symptoms?
It is the most common cause of back pain in adolescents, however it has been estimated that 80% of people with a spondylolisthesis will never have symptoms, and if it does become symptomatic, only 15 to 20 per cent will ever need surgical correction.
Symptoms include:
• Lower back pain
• Pain that radiates to the buttocks and thighs
• Pain that is worse when standing or moving
• Pain that feels better when sitting
• A tired feeling in the legs and possibly leg numbness
• Pain that radiates below the knee
How is it treated?
There are a range of non-surgical treatments available such as pain killers, heat/ice application, physical therapy, chiropractic manipulation and epidural steroid injection.
Surgery is rarely needed, but in the case that it is, doctors may recommend a spinal fusion to stop the movement of the vertebral segment.
Two weeks later, Ece had her first five-hour operation, during which medics put a metal rod into her spine, held in place by six screws, to straighten her back and relieve the pressure caused by the hernia.
She recalled: “Just 24 hours after the surgery, doctors tried to make me walk again.
“At first I tried to reject it – I was so scared.
“But I knew I had to try, and when I did it – helped by two nurses – it felt amazing.
“It was a miracle – I had so much pain that I couldn't breathe, but I'd done it.”
Ece spent the next fortnight in hospital where she had intensive physiotherapy every day and gradually started improving.
But just six months later, she started to feel numbness in her legs again – one of her screws had come loose.
Thankfully after another surgery, the problem was solved and since then Ece has had minimal pain.
No matter what people tell you, you can do whatever you want – they told me I didn’t have any chance of walking again, but I did it
Ece Ozcan
Now, 18 months later, she is finally back on her feet and walking normally again.
Ece said: “It took a while to get back to normal.
“For the first year I couldn't walk properly, and I couldn't carry anything other than my phone.
“Now I still have pain occasionally, but I'm finally on the mend.
“I'm so glad I've finally managed it – many people might've given up when a doctor told them they wouldn't walk again, but I was stubborn and refused to accept it.
“I'm so grateful I kept pushing, and found a doctor who believed in me and was willing to perform my surgery.
“No matter what people tell you, you can do whatever you want – they told me I didn't have any chance of walking again, but I did it.
“Never, ever stop believing in yourself.”
Ece's surgeon, Dr Ali Fahi Ozer from the American Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, said: “Ece had an abnormality in her spine, which was there when she was born.
“When she started growing, this abnormality caused her spine to slide and caused serious anatomical corruption.
“This serious anatomical damage was squeezing the nerves, and her body reacted with a scoliosis.
“She needed surgery on her back, which was risky as any mistake would have caused permanent paralysis.
“During the surgery, we cleaned the hernias, opened squeezed nerves and screwed her spine with six screws, to make it in line with how it should be in normal anatomy.
“Gradually Ece's spine and the tissue got better, and now she has no further problems.”