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Colombia: Montoya faces nine-month wait [Sat Sep 17th, 2005]
Former Once Caldas coach Luis Fernando Montoya will have to wait nine months to see the results of the surgery he underwent for a new diaphragmatic regulator.
The regulator will help the 48-year-old coach breathe without the need for any other devices.
Doctors in Medellin city's Las Americas hospital confirmed that there is still the risk of infection and Montoya's body rejecting the new device.
"We're preparing for big difficulties," said neurosurgeon Ignacio Gonzalez, who led the surgery which lasted for more than eight hours.
"I'm optimistic. Montoya's development has been extremely good," he added.
"If it works, Luis Fernando's quality of life will improve in an extraordinary way.
"By breathing alone, he won't be affected by infections, he can move better in his wheelchair, his voice would be much better and he would be able to eat better too."
Montoya was shot twice on December 22 when he tried to save his wife from a robbery and was paralysed after a bullet damaged his spine.
PA Sport
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