Juan Manuel Correa has been taken out of an induced coma three weeks after the tragic Formula 2 crash at Spa, although there are still major concerns regarding his leg injuries.
The 20-year-old Ecuadorian-American was initially hospitalised in nearby Liege, before being transferred to London where he was diagnosed with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, which resulted in Acute Respiratory Failure.
While out of a coma and off life support, Correa’s physical state is still ‘fragile’ according to a new statement from his family.
Statement from Juan Manuel Correa’s family
As of today, Juan Manuel Correa has been removed from the ECMO machine, life support and taken out of induced coma. While this is great news and a major step in the right direction, he is still in a race against time
Juan Manuel is conscious, but not fully yet awake. Doctors report that this will take a few days due to being in induced coma for more than two weeks. They have also stated that Juan Manuel is fragile and still vulnerable medically speaking and that he remains in the Intensive Care Unit. His condition has been upgraded from critical to serious.
The medical priority for Juan Manuel now shifts from the lungs to the leg injuries that were sustained more than two weeks ago and have not been addressed since the initial emergency intervention the day of the incident. Doctors are in a race against time to perform a pending major surgery in order to minimize risk of irreversible injuries to his right lower extremity but can’t proceed until lungs are ready to withstand a lengthy operation.
Additional details will be provided on Juan Manuel’s condition when available.