Since Bobbi Kristina Brown was discovered in the home that she shared with Nick Gordon lying unconscious, face down in a bathtub, she has remained in a hospital, dependent on life support measures. As the days turned into weeks since that frantic January 31 call to 911, experts have discussed whether it is time for the daughter of Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston to be moved to a rehabilitation center for long-term care. And that time for Bobbi Kristina to leave the ICU has arrived, according to Extra .
Why make the decision to move her from Emory Hospital to a rehab facility? Because it is more appropriate for the long-term care that the 22-year-old now needs. And for Bobby Brown, the news that his daughter requires this level of care is devastating.
The move comes after Bobbi Kristina has remained in a medically-induced coma for seven weeks. Although the families of Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston have remained by her bedside, praying for a medical miracle, her condition has not changed.
The parallel to how Whitney died has been heart-breaking for the family. Houston’s cause of death included accidental drowning in a bathtub, cocaine use, and heart disease. As a result, for both Bobby and Bobbi Kristina’s grandmother, Cissy Houston, the knowledge that the 22-year-old could die from similar causes has been almost unbearable.
But although physicians have advised them that a complete recovery is almost impossible, they have sought to hope for a miracle through the power of prayer.
Although Bobby has the power of attorney when it comes to making medical decisions on Bobbi Kristina’s behalf, the family recently met to discuss whether it is time to take her off life support , reported Entertainment Tonight .
Shayne Brown, who is Bobby’s nephew, insists that she is improving, saying, “She’s getting better. We just ask for people to continue to pray.”
But although the family resists removing Bobbi Kristina from life support because of their belief in prayer, Atlanta neurologist Dr. Julian Bragg revealed the reality of her situation.
“The options presented to the family at this point are very difficult. People aren’t able to predict what’s going to happen. The big decision is often between what kind of life the person’s going to have and how long they’re going to have it. While very heroic measures can be taken to keep a body alive, often it’s difficult to decide if that life is going to be the type that that person would want to live.”
As for the move to a rehabilitation center, it provides Bobbi Kristina with experts to help her regain basic skills, because the lengthy period in which she has remained in a coma means that those abilities are highly diminished, said Dr. Bragg.
“After spending more than two weeks in a medically induced coma, or for any cause, the body goes through a number of changes. There is a significant decrease in muscle strength both in terms of moving the limbs and in terms of breathing. Often people require extensive strengthening not only in being able to sit, stand and move around, but even simpler things like swallowing and breathing.”
But questions remain about what happened in the days and hours before Bobbi Kristina was found unconscious. As the Inquisitr reported, she shared a home with Nick Gordon, who was raised by Whitney Houston as if he were Bobbi Kristina’s brother, but that relationship changed to lovers.
In an interview with Dr. Phil that quickly changed into an intervention and resulted in a trip to rehab for Gordon, Nick admitted to drug and alcohol abuse.
Dr. Phil reported on their conversation.
“[Gordon was] clearly in an altered state of consciousness. I asked him if he was sober, and he said ‘No.’”
But Bobbi Kristina also reportedly abused drugs , including heroin and cocaine. That leaves the question of whether her drug use, combined with the amount of time that she spent without oxygen, can make a complete recovery possible.
But one expert says that Bobbi Kristina’s youth is on her side, reported the New York Daily News .
“In someone young we definitely give her a chance to recover as much as possible, so it is not surprising that they’re keeping her sedated for a long time,” explained Dr. Rafael Ortiz in reference to the medically-induced coma.
Director of the Center for Cerebrovascular Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital, the physician clarified that the coma helps to decrease the brain swelling resulting from that oxygen loss. He contends that only when she is removed from the coma, which could potentially occur at the rehabilitation center, can an assessment be accurately made.
“That’s the only point (at which) you can make an accurate assessment,” Ortiz asserted.
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