Schumacher will not be 'Schumacher' if he survives: Brain surgeon

Michael has been unconsciousness for over two weeks since smashing his head on a rock while skiing

A brain surgery specialist has reportedly claimed that Formula One legend Michael Schumacher will be a completely different person than he was should he survive the severe head injuries he suffered in a skiing accident in December.

The seven-time German world champion, who retired in 2012, is currently being treated in Grenoble University Hospital for brain injuries he suffered in an accident while skiing off-piste in Meribel in the French Alps.

According to The Independent, although doctors have begun tests on Schumacher, who has been in a medically-induced coma for over two weeks since he struck his head on a rock that left his helmet split in two, however, Dr Richard Greenwood has warned that a successful recovery would still involve adjusting to an entirely different life.

The acute brain surgery specialist, from University College London Hospital, said that if Schumacher survives, he will 'not be Michael Schumacher', adding that his rehabilitation will only be effective if he comes to terms with being 'some other person than himself'.

Greenwood also said that this is a very hard process to take people through, adding that they need to come to terms with their limitations - the fact they have changed.

Greenwood was speaking at the launch of a study, in which it found that people who had suffered a traumatic head injury were three times as likely to die prematurely as those who had not, the report added.