Man on Hawaii Honeymoon Left Paralyzed After Surfing Accident

A man from Georgia has been left paralyzed from the waist down after a rare injury sustained while surfing in Hawaii.

Brendan Town was on a two-week honeymoon with his wife, Cho Pak when he was during a surfing lesson on September 7.

The Atlanta resident felt a twinge as he popped up onto the board, but thinking he had merely pulled a muscle, he carried on surfing, Fox 5 Atlanta reported. In the coming hours, his legs started going numb. Doctors at a local hospital told him that he had surfer's myelopathy.

"It is a rare, non-traumatic spinal cord injury that causes paraplegia, or paralysis below the waist. The injury is caused by hyperextension of the back," Pak wrote on a GoFundMe page created to support her husband's medical bills.

Surfer's myelopathy is caused by injury to the spinal cord, the major nerve fiber running down the center of the spine. When the back is hyperextended, it can lead to the bending of a blood vessel supplying the spinal cord, depriving the cord of oxygen.

It's an exceedingly rare condition; only around 60 cases have ever been recorded, according to the National Library of Medicine. Other activities including ballet, yoga, gymnastics and pilates can also lead to myelopathy.

"The symptoms started out as a mild discomfort on the lower back, similar to a pinched nerve, but it quickly deteriorated to numbness followed by paralysis to the lower half of his body," Pak wrote on GoFundMe. "The disease itself is rare so there are no standardized treatment options as of yet. After the MRI, he was diagnosed and then airlifted to Queen's Hospital with a knowledgeable neurosurgeon team to begin treatment."

"He has undergone an angiogram and lumbar drain procedure to reduce swelling and to confirm the MRI reports on the spinal cord. We are still waiting to hear back from the doctor of more detailed result[s] but considering he still has small feeling [in] his lower half we are very hopeful he will make improvements with the help of good rest and physical therapy," she said.

The condition can be permanent, but other cases have seen patients walking again in a matter of months, or even weeks.

"Started OT & PT today so I'm very excited and hopeful. Can't move the legs still but I was able to move myself into the chair! They told me it's a big deal so I'll take that as a win," Town wrote on his GoFundMe on Saturday.

In another update on Monday, Towns announced he had been moved out of the ICU.

"A little catch up on PT / OT, I have been able to move myself completely over to a wheelchair without much assistance! Yayay! Core balance is excellent and we will be working on general care for myself and how to get around. I have had the spinal fluid drain removed and am now resting up in general care. No more crazy wires and IV's all over," he said.

"My goal is to be able to withstand the 8-9 hour flight back home by the end of this week. Once back home I will be starting in patient physical therapy that will help expedite the process of my healing and being able to walk again."

The couple have raised $9,145 of their $15,000 goal so far. They are expecting a baby in February.

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