U.S. Marine Recovering from Rare Spinal Surgery Following Bombing Incident in Afghanistan

U.S. Marine Marc Burleson currently is recovering at Johns Hopkins Hospital from a rare surgery performed on his spine following an incident in Afghanistan last December, when he was severely injured while trying to diffuse a bomb. The explosion mutilated Burleson’s face, ripped off part of his right arm, paralyzed his left arm, blinded him in one eye and left him unconscious for nearly a month.

In late July, the 31-year-old Texan underwent a procedure in which neurosurgeon Allan J. Belzberg, MD, FAANS, burned off damaged nerves in his spinal cord to stop pain in other parts of his body, which had become excruciating to the point that Burleson was addicted to painkillers and contemplating suicide. Dr. Belzberg performs said surgery three to four times a year, primarily on accident victims. For more information, click here to read the full article.