By Cordy Brown, Science Correspondent
Published: April 14, 2025
Surgeons successfully reattached an Illinois woman’s skull to her spine following a rare and life-threatening internal decapitation caused by a freak accident, according to a report.
At 16, Megan King, now 35, fell during a soccer game in gym class, injuring her ankle, spine, and tearing muscles off both shoulder blades, the Daily Mail reported.
After 22 surgeries, King’s health deteriorated, and she was diagnosed with hypermobile Ehlers Danlos syndrome (hEDS), a genetic disorder affecting collagen production and causing joint instability, the outlet noted.
A year later, King’s neck dislocated, requiring a “halo brace” with screws in her skull to stabilize it. During the brace’s removal, her skull detached from her spine, resulting in a near-fatal atlanto-occipital dislocation, or internal decapitation, per the report.
“I tilted my chair back to avoid gravity pulling my head off. My neurosurgeon held my skull in place. I couldn’t stand, and my right side shook uncontrollably,” King told the outlet.
Emergency surgery fused her skull to her spine. “I woke up unable to move my head at all,” King said.
Despite a 90% fatality rate due to potential nerve damage causing paralysis of vital organs, King survived. She has undergone 37 surgeries, leaving her body fused from skull to pelvis, with no head movement, the outlet stated.
“My spine is completely rigid, but I haven’t stopped living,” she said.
Internal decapitations, though rare—making up less than 1% of cervical injuries—are three times more common in children due to underdeveloped bones, per a 2015 study. King’s hEDS and fall triggered her injury, she explained.
King is rediscovering hobbies, recently bowling a strike. “My friends cheered not just for the strike but for all I’ve overcome,” she said.
“I’m still learning my body’s limits. It’s tough, but I’m adapting and amazed by what I can still do.”
