Man communicating after 23 years in coma is a hoax.

[Archae]

I had my suspicions, about this guy supposedly communicating with people after being 23 years in a vegetative state, and I wrote to the Skeptic's Dictionary about it.

Turns out I wasn't the only one with serious doubts, and I was right.

He's "communicating" via what's called "Facilitated Communication," which under proper scientific tests has been shown to be a cruel hoax.


Just when you thought medical reporting in the mass media couldn't get any worse, you're proved wrong again. The media are hot on the story of a person who allegedly began communicating in sophisticated prose after 23 years in a vegetative state. Most of the stories I've seen on the topic claim the fellow is using a computer to communicate. The whole truth is that he is (literally) being manipulated by a facilitator. Here is what his facilitator typed and is being passed on to the unsuspecting world as coming from a brain that has been silent for over two decades:

I am called Rom. I am not dead. The nurses came, they patted me, they sometimes took my hand, and I heard them say "no hope." I meditated, I dreamed my life away--it was all I could do. I don't want to blame anyone--it wouldn't do any good. But I owe my life to my family. Everyone else gave up.

I studied what happened around me as if it were a tiny piece of world drama, the bizarre peculiarities of the other patients in the common room, the entry of the doctors into my room, the gossip of the nurses who were not embarrassed to speak about their boyfriends in front of "the extinct one." That made me an expert on relationships.


James Randi correctly spotted the hoax in his latest blog entry and refers those who want to get the truth to view the first few minutes of a video being shown on MS NBC here. It is obvious that this poor fellow is having his finger dragged by his facilitator to letters on a board.

Steven Laure's, head of the Coma Science Group and neurology department at the University of Liege in Belgium, is the expert who is promoting this hoax as a medical "mistake." He claims that 25% of people in a coma are misdiagnosed.* I'd say 100% of doctors who make the kinds of claims Laure's is making will have 25% of the mass media at his doorstep. The hoax will be pounced on by the anti-right-to-die crowd and will reopen the disinformation campaign aimed at destroying health care reform. The God-is-good crowd will be crowing about this latest "miracle." I'm sure we'll hear that IBM's "death panels" would have executed this poor fellow. One media vulture is using the disinformation to argue that Terri Shiva's death was an unjustified homicide. The Associated Press reports that Rom is writing a book "about his experiences."* I'm sure there will be few movies to follow.

As Randi says: I'm outraged. This is a sad story that shouldn't end in exploitainment.

Here are some of the media reports:

Rom Houben, Man In Coma For 23 Years, Was Fully Conscious, Mom Says
Huffington Post -
For 23 torturous years, Rom Houben says he lay trapped in his paralyzed body, aware of what was going on around him but unable to tell anyone or even cry out.

"It Was My Second Birth"
CBS News -
Belgium's Rom Houben uses his touchscreen to communicate during an interview in Zolder, Belgium, Nov. 24, 2009. Houben was misdiagnosed for 23 years as ...

Man Conscious during 23-Year Coma
CBS - ‎
After 23 years in a coma, a Belgium man had an amazing awakening and says he was conscious while in the coma. Elizabeth Palmer reports.

Trapped 'coma' man: How was he misdiagnosed?
CNN International -
London, England (CNN) -- A Belgian car crash victim who was misdiagnosed as being in a vegetative state for 23 years was conscious the ...

Doctors Find Paralyzed Man Was Awake for 23 Years, Not in Vegetative State
ABC News - ‎
A paralyzed Belgian man who spent the past 23 years incorrectly diagnosed as being in a vegetative state, was fully conscious and could hear ...

Belgian man was not in coma for 23 years
RTE.ie -
A Belgian car crash victim who was paralysed for 23 years but unable to communicate was not in a coma, a new study has revealed. ...

Man believed to have been in coma since 1983 conscious all the time
Belfast Telegraph - ‎
A man presumed to have been in a coma for 23 years has spoken of his “second birth” after doctors realised that he had been fully conscious all along but ...

http://www.skepdic.com/facilcom.html#news

[geckosfeet]

1. Pretty sick stuff.

[mudplanet]

53. If he is concsious I'd expect the first words he'd communicate would

be, "Please kill me."

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

2. Have they tried using another facilitator, a disinterested party?

Any doctor who wants to avoid great embarrassment would surely try this to make sure. I saw a clip on CNN earlier today and I wondered whether the person who supposedly had to hold up his hand might not be the one actually doing the communicating. If he has any strength at all to move his hand after it's held up, couldn't they find some other more subtle means of communication? Even Stephen Hawking could communicate with the slightest of movements.

[Archae]

4. It's easy to test facilitated communication.

Show the person being helped a picture, without letting the communicator see it.

Every time the facilitated communication fails.

They even showed this on "Law and Order" with a quack using electric shocks to "train" those with autism.

[alfredo]

9. Here's the touch screen he is using.

[tekisui]

32. That was my first thought when I heard this story.

What bunk.

[alfredo]

49. I wonder if the family is in on the scam, or are they being scammed?

[Archae]

57. I think they out of false hope are beng scammed.

[alfredo]

60. I saw on wired.com that they believe it is a scam.

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/11/houben-communication/

[ZombieHorde]

3. Which part is a hoax, is Rom Houben a real human, was he in a coma,

did he come out of a coma? What is the story?

[Bolo Boffin]

6. They're now saying he's locked in.

There have been tests that show a functioning cerebral cortex. However, all the teary video I've seen is very obviously FC. So the man's true condition is hard to say.

[Warpy]

21. Locked in syndrome is very real

and can be confirmed by EEG. If the patient has eye control, communication is reasoably easy. If not, there's not a hell of a lot we can do, although some minimal voluntary movement has been restored in a few patients.

90% of patients with locked in syndrome are dead within the first year. If he survived 23 years of being locked in, it's more than a miracle.

[arthritisR_US]

18. his communicating is the hoax. In double blind studies facilitated

communication has never been supported.

[Liquorice]

51. A lot of them aren't authentic, but at least one case was proven in a court of law.

The case of Ann McDonald. It's very interesting. She is someone who was truly locked-in, and there are others as well.

http://www.deal.org.au/AnnePages/Anne_Proving_I_Exist.html

[Bolo Boffin]

5. I've heard and read that tests show the cerebral cortex is still functioning

However, almost all of the video I've seen is clearly FC.

The man's actual ability to communicate has yet to be determined, if he can at all. A very sad story.

[Archae]

58. The syndrome can be real.

It's the guy's "communicating" that is a scam.

[valerief]

7. When I read this, I thought of this post...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7082001

Now who benefits from keeping veggies alive? Hmm... Not Jesus. No. Not taxpayers. No, not them. Iran? I don't think so. Tightrope walkers? No.

I'd say it was those Catholic facilities and their feeding tube suppliers and pharma and all the folks billed to keep the veggie alive.

Funny how the Schiavoesque story surfaced once the Catholic Church made their "Ethical and Religious Directive" about keeping veggies alive.

[malaise]

11. 100% correct

and the real cash cow is people on Medicare and Medicaid. Keep them alive forever and milk the taxpayers.
The greatest parasites on planet earth are religious institutions.

[valerief]

16. I can't disagree with that assessment. nt

[GMA]

26. Another thoughtful response...

[anonymous171]

43. What the fucking fuck is this fucking shit?

The greatest parasites are the rich.

[malaise]

45. Like the Pope? n/t

[anonymous171]

47. Of course. Have you seen his shoes? nt

[lightningandsnow]

20. Did you just refer to human beings as veggies?

People are still people, no matter how severely disabled.

:puke:

[anonymous171]

42. Yes the evil Catholic Church has planned this all out to interfere with American Politics

[merh]

46. If the Catholic Church really cared about the directives you would

think that all would be on board health care reform and insisting on a true public option.

Second, the biblical mandate to care for the poor requires us to express this in concrete action at all levels of Catholic health care. This mandate prompts us to work to ensure that our country's health care delivery system provides adequate health care for the poor. In Catholic institutions particular attention should be given to the health care needs of the poor, the uninsured and the underinsured.8

[baldguy]

8. And what about the brain scan that says different?

[Archae]

12. A brain scan can show a guy is lucid...

Even if the brain is not.

Don't forget, Terry Schiavo was supposedly given a brain scan, showing she wasn't in a vegetative state.
The autopsy showed the brain scan was 100% dead wrong.

Facilitated Communicators for the most part are operating under a self-delusion, they believe it works, and that's all the evidence they need.

[Barack_America]

17. Not necessarily. The scan likely shows that his brain is receiving blood supply...

...consistent with being in an "awake" state.

It really cannot diagnose "function" of the brain, that's where neurologic tests come in.

[baldguy]

36. IIRC Terry Schiavo's brain scan DID NOT show an active, functioning brain.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Schiavo

[druidity33]

10. Is that the Amazing Randi?

Why should i believe you and him? Other than the posted video, do you have any evidence to support your assertion?

:shrug:

[Celebration]

13. It is diagnosing remotely

Like Frist did with Terry Schiavo.

James Randi, MD :rofl:

They could ask him a question that the facilitator doesn't know.

BTW, brain imaging does support their claims, at least to an extent.

[Orrex]

55. Brain imaging supports their claims that the man may retain some form of consciousness

It does nothing to support the claims that he's communicating through a facilitator.


James Randi isn't diagnosing the man's neurological condition; he's debunking "facilitated communication" as the fraud that it is. Therefore his assessment is nothing at all ike Bill Frist's diagnosis of Schiavo.

[Archae]

14. Damn right it is.

Tell you what, let's give the communicator the same SCIENTIFIC test other communicators have given.

I have zero doubt that communicator will do like all the others do, fail.

You see, James Randi has this horrible tendency to rely on science, instead of wishful thinking.
Now if that's EEEEE-VIL in your view, fine.

[vogonity]

15. Facilitated Communication has been thoroughly discredited

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/programs/transcripts/1202.html

Scroll down in the transcript to where they refer to "Betsy" and the images she vs the facilitator saw.

Thoroughly discredited.

[arthritisR_US]

19. I worked with an organization utilizing FC and it's absolute bunk IMHO. n/t

[mariawr]

61. FC allows people w/ autism to communicate....

I have shown Sue's story many times in my Spec. Ed course for teachers...
http://www.sue-rubin.org/

[arthritisR_US]

63. has Sue been in any double blind studies? n/t

[anonymous171]

40. I thought he was dead? nt

[Warren Stupidity]

22. I wondered what the heck was up with that story. K&R

[bergie321]

23. Easy Test

1. Have "facilitator" leave the room
2. Tell word to patient
3. Have "facilitator" facilitate word

[Archae]

24. Scientific testers have done just that.

And the communicators fail. Every time.

[Celebration]

59. Have they tried it with THIS patient? n/t

[Junkdrawer]

25. Watch video here:

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/975121/belgian-coma-man-was-just-awake-for-23-years

The man's eyes are closed, yet the facilitator is typing with his hand a warp speed.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

27. He types faster than I do with my eyes OPEN.

Fraud!

[tomm2thumbs]

50. thanks for that video link - tells the complete story there - sad sad

The person running the keypad never thought to make sure his eyes were open while doing it - this is like a bad South Park episode video.

[HughMoran]

28. I'm not sure it's a hoax

They said he initially communicated using his foot. I noticed that his arm stays up when the facilitator is not there. They say he can move his finger as well. It may be that he can't move fast enough to type in any reasonable amount of time, so the facilitator feels his motion and follows it. I will admit that it does seem that the facilitator seems to move his hand altogether too fast though.

[Barack_America]

38. And when his eyes are closed?

CBS showed video of him "communicating" while his eyes were closed.

[HughMoran]

44. Didn't see that

I guess they'll have to show him move his hand & type unaided.

[Barack_America]

48. I posted a link to it here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7080035

In case you're interested.

For the record, yes, I'm very skeptical of this, but I'm open to being proven wrong.

[alcibiades_mystery]

29. The Doctor is Ouija Board Certified

:hide:

[harkadog]

30. I guess all the doctors involved are in the hoax too

[LisaL]

56. If the doctor saw on his brain scan that he has brain function

then he has brain function.
It doesn't mean he is the one typing those things and communicating with the world.

[harkadog]

62. So the doctors involved wouldn't notice the typing?

Only someone on some blog sees things that the medical personnel that are actually there don't? I know, it is a conspiracy of all involved.

[bbinacan]

31. I'm amazed at the number

of neurologists present on this post.:sarcasm: :eyes:

[Odin2005]

33. Oh BS.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7079718&mesg_id=7081315

[Junkdrawer]

34. .

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/975121/belgian-coma-man-was-just-awake-for-23-years

[Archae]

35. Fine, Put her facilitated communicator to the test.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

41. Sorry, your story is weak

Nobody is said to have an IQ of 10.

IQ is simply not used to describe that kind of total mental disability.

Bogus medical stories tend to overstate the cure or, more frequently, overstate the severity of the initial condition.

[anonymous171]

37. So he's still in a coma or what? Skeptics have jumped on to one part of the story

but haven't really addressed the other.

[Barack_America]

39. Only people with access to his medical records can know that. nt

[Stephanie]

52. Easier way to prove it's a hoax:

Orly believes it's true.

WITH OBAMA PLAN THIS MAN WOULD’VE BEEN PUT TO SLEEP
Posted on | November 24, 2009 | 3 Comments

COMATOSE FOR 23 YEARS BELGIAN FEELS REBORN

No link because her site is infected again -

[LisaL]

54. He is supposedly communicating in these perfect sentences,

after 23 years of not being able to communicate. Pardon me if I have my doubts.