Roy’s surgery proves spinal cord not severed

BOSTON – The Boston University hockey player who was paralyzed after crashing headfirst into the boards remained in guarded condition after undergoing several hours of surgery Monday, his doctors said.

“He has shown no evidence of any recovery of function,” said Dr. James Reed, the neurosurgeon who performed the operation.

Travis Roy’s doctors had originally thought his spinal cord was severed. Reed said they were pleased to find during surgery that the cord was intact, although it was compressed, swollen and in shock.

Roy, of Yarmouth, Maine, was injured in the opening minutes of a game Friday night against the University of North Dakota. He shattered the fourth vertebra in his neck and injured his spinal cord, paralyzing him from the neck down.

It was the first time the 20-year-old was on the ice as a BU player.

Doctors discussed details of the operation in a news conference Monday evening at Boston University Medical Center where the surgery took place.

Asked how long the surgery took, Reed said the hospital “doesn’t keep track of that.”

Roy was breathing Monday through a tube inserted into his trachea, his doctors said.

“We’re playing it conservative in the hopes that within several days or a week we’ll be able to remove the tube and he’ll be able to (breathe) normally,” Reed said.

Roy’s relatives from Maine, New York, Florida and Vermont had gathered at the hospital during the operation. Brenda Roy, the boy’s mother, said she remained hopeful.

“When he first fell I thought `Oh, his shoulder, his arm, will he be able to play in the next game?”‘ said Brenda Roy. “You quickly realize where your priorities lie when you realize there won’t be another game.”