Famous People with Quadriplegia

Famous People with Quadriplegia

Quadriplegia is a disorder that affects a large fraction of individuals. A person with quadriplegia is unable to use all four limbs including legs and arms and other body parts. There are some cases, however, where a person may still have movement in a single limb or other body parts. The main cause of the problem is a trauma to the spine. This in turn affects the central nervous system.


Stephen Hawking
There are many people who live with quadriplegia. It has affected notable people who have made major contributions in society.

Some stars, celebrities and other notables worldwide are known to have endured this condition and contribute to society nonetheless.

List of Famous Quadriplegics

Jesse Billauer
Ior Bock
John Callahan
Walter Harris Callow
Roy Campanella
John Carter
Vic Chesnutt
Chuck Close
Darren Drozdov
Brooke Ellison
Steven Fletcher
Stephen Hawking
Jill Kinmont
Robert Seung-Bok Lee
Hilary Lister
Tom Luckey
Curtis Mayfield
Ruth Sienkiewicz-Mercer
Edward Rainey
Christopher Reeve
Ed Roberts
Travis Roy
Patrick Rummerfield
Ramón Sampedro
Sam Schmidt
Darryl Stingley
Sam Sullivan
Joni Eareckson Tada
Mike Utley
Brad Zdanivsky
Mark Zupan

Stephen Hawking (pictured at top) has been an inspiration to many individuals suffering from quadriplegia. He has been suffering from the condition for years but this has not stopped him from pushing on. He is an internationally renowned physicist who has defied time and pronouncements from doctors that he would not live beyond 23 years.

Hawking was given this information when he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) which is also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease when he was only 21. He cannot walk, and has a difficult time breathing. Apart from this he also has a hard time holding his head. Over time Hawking has communicated using speech-generating devices, eye tracking technology and has even tested iBrain to let a computer “read” his thoughts.


Christopher Reeve

Christopher Reeve was an American actor, producer, director and writer. He starred in several films throughout his career. He played the role of Superman in four films from the year 1978 to 1987. During the 80s he acted in several movies including Somewhere in Time, Deathtrap, The Bostonians and Street Smart.

Reeve was paralyzed when he got into an accident during an equestrian competition. He used a wheelchair from the day of the accident. Despite his situation, he did not give up but continued to struggle on. He even began lobbying for people with spinal cord injuries.

He is the founder of the Christopher Reeve Foundation and a co-founder of the Reeve-Irvine Research Center. He died at the age of 52 from cardiac arrest that was caused by systemic infection.

American soul singer Curtis Mayfield was paralyzed from the neck down after an accident on stage in 1990. During an outdoor concert in Brooklyn, NY stage lighting fell upon him. Mayfield continue to perform vocals while lying on his back until his death in 1999.


Curtis Mayfield

There are many other famous people worldwide who are living with the condition. Some of them include Roy Campanella, Edward Rainey, Jesse Billauer, Chuck Close, Robert Seung-Bok Lee and Walter Harris Callow.

While quadriplegia is a natural deterrent to most who suffer this fate, a few continue to push on and make remarkable contributions in spite of all odds.

 

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