Dutch prince suffers extensive brain damage

In the shadow of the announcement of the unexpected choice of names for the new-born Swedish heiress yesterday, the doctors treating Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau, the second son of the Queen of the Netherlands, were finally able to say something more certain about his condition following his skiing accident in Lech, Austria a week ago. Unfortunately it seems the outlook is very bleak.
According to the doctors, the Prince had been buried in the avalanche for some 25 minutes before being taken by rescue helicopter to the Innsbruck University Hospital, where he received reanimation treatment before being taken to the intensive care trauma unit.
As a result of having been deprived of oxygen for a long time, the Prince suffered a 50 minutes long cardiac arrest and had to be constantly reanimated. “Fifty minutes is a very long time", the doctors say. “One could say, too long. We hoped that the patient's mild hypothermic state had sufficiently protected the brain against excessive damage. Unfortunately, our hope was in vain”.
The first MRI-scan, which was undertaken on Thursday when this was finally deemed safe enough, and neurological tests later in the day revealed that Prince Friso has suffered extensive brain damage.
“At present it is not certain whether he will ever regain consciousness. In any event, rehabilitation will take months, if not years. Prince Friso's family will now look for an appropriate rehabilitation facility", the statement ends.