Michael Schumacher 'slightly improved' but still critical

MICHAEL Schumacher's doctors say he remains in a critical condition but is slightly improved from his earlier "very acute" state.

MICHAEL Schumacher remains in a critical and fragile condition with continual bleeding on the brain, but is slightly improved from the "very acute" state he was in 24 hours earlier, his doctors have revealed.

Professor Emmanuel Gay carried out a second operation to remove a large blood clot within the brain itself, after Schumacher's condition briefly stabilised Tuesday morning AEST.

The two-hour surgery successfully removed the large haematoma and subsequent scans had shown a slight improvement.

But the doctors are wary of any prognosis, short term or even long term and said he was still in serious danger. They would not be drawn on how long he would remain in a coma and said the next 24 hours was critical.

Professor Gay said: "There is still some blood and haematomas everywhere, that's why the situation has to be looked at hour by hour, we are looking at a serious brain injury and the situation can still develop. The other haematomas are not accessible, they are not of the same size as the one removed.''

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During the second surgery, the doctors were able to reduce the pressure on the brain and said the former Formula One driver was in a phase of relative stability.

Doctors said the first operation soon after the accident was to remove a blood clot that was just outside of the brain, and it had been too risky to eliminate the large blood clot within the brain on the left side of his head.

But surgeons took advantage of a small window of stability to conduct the second operation, which they said had resulted in better control of the intracranial pressure.

"On the controlled scans taken this morning [it showed the haematoma] was evacuated and the level of intracranial pressure has certainly improved, but scans shows other lesions on the brain," said Professor Gay.

"They will be supervised and followed and up, we will supervise situation on an hourly basis in intensive care."

The doctors earlier remarked that Schumacher would have been killed instantly on Sunday morning if he had not been wearing a helmet when he fell and cracked his head on rocks in the off piste ski area in Meribel ski resort in the French alps.

Two days after the accident, he remains in an induced coma in intensive care at the University Hospital of Grenoble with his wife Corinna and their children Mick, 14, and daughter Gina-Marie, 16, at his bedside. Other family members have also arrived to support Corinna, hospital officials said.