Michael Schumacher in ‘Slightly Better Condition’ After Skiing Accident

Dec 31, 2013 02:53 PM EST | Matt Mercuro

French doctors tending to former Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher for brain injuries suffered in a skiing accident said he is in "slightly better condition" after an overnight operation, according to Reuters.

Despite the overall good news, the seven-time F1 world champion is still "fragile" and it could take doctors days to determine how his condition would progress.

Schumacher, 44, was skiing at a French resort on Dec. 29 when he fell and hit his head against a rock.

The retired driver's condition was stabilized enough by Dec. 30 to carry out a new operation to treat effects of internal bleeding inside Schumacher's skull, said doctors treating him at the Grenoble, France hospital, according to Reuters.

"The situation is more under control than yesterday but we cannot say he is out of danger," Jean-Francois Payen, head anaesthetician, said at a news conference at the hospital. "We have won some time but we must continue an hour-by-hour surveillance. It is premature to speculate on his condition."

Emmanuel Gay, the head of the hospital's neurosurgery department, said the operation took place at approximately 10:00 pm on Dec. 30 after removing a large hematoma, which is a build-u of blood, had been removed.

Doctors said that if the former driver wasn't wearing a helmet at the time, there's a good chance he wouldn't have made it as long as he has.

Schumacher is currently being monitored by Professor Gerard Saillant, the president of the International Automobile Federation (FIA) Institute, and a brain and spinal injury "expert," according to Reuters.

"We are a little less worried than yesterday but I'm sure you understand that the situation could change this evening or tomorrow," Saillant said during a news conference this week, according to Reuters.

Schumacher lives in Switzerland with his wife and two children. He won 91 races during his career which spanned over two decades, according to ESPN.

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