Health

The 'Jigsaw Man' smiles again!

by Samir Joshi | May 17, 2009 at 01:23 am

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A lorry driver so disfigured in a road crash that doctors named him the ‘Jigsaw Man’ has smiled again for the first time.

Michael Bradbury, 39, suffered multiple fractures to his skull, cheekbone and jaw when his brakes failed and he careered off the road.

His jaw was crushed into his skull, destroying his mouth and nose, and stripping him of three of his senses, when he collided into a tree and slammed his head into the dashboard.

Here's wishing him further recovery and good times ahead!

Michael crashed his Scania lorry into trees in July last year after losing control on the A380 near Exeter in Devon.

He has no memory of the accident but it is thought that the impact of the smash flung Michael from the vehicle, a crane support lorry.

Michael was airlifted to hospital in Exeter where he underwent emergency surgery and spent a week in intensive care.

He was then moved to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth where he underwent a 12-hour operation to piece together his skull.

Two weeks later he had another five-hour operation and remained in the hospital's high dependency ward for three weeks.

Over the following months, he underwent further operations included a silicon implant in his face to support his right eye - which had sunk low into his face.

Michael's mouth was ripped open leaving him scarred for life but after intensive physiotherapy he is now able to make facial expressions again.

His wife Kirsten, 35, a housekeeper, said it was 'wonderful' to see Michael smile at her for the first time since the crash.

She said: 'Because he had stitches in for so long it took a long time before he started getting his facial expressions back.

'Now he has started smiling again - it was wonderful to see him do that for the first time.