Ryan Wylie: The Body of Richard Baker

"On October 11th, 2010 Richard Baker collapsed in the emergency room waiting area of Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri. He was administered pulmonary resuscitation before being admitted into the Barnes Jewish Cardio-Pulmonary wing. He remained unconscious overnight, monitored by a pulse oximeter and breathing only with the assistance of a ventilator. Baker, a technical writer 37 years of age specializing in medical equipment manuals, was initially diagnosed with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), likely brought about by exhaustion.

After 14 hours of sleep the patient awoke and regained control of his lungs, although his breathing was irregular. Pulse oximeter data showed 85% oxygen saturation (SpO2) with the ventilator and 100% SpO2 within 2 hours of regaining consciousness. The subject's lungs displayed healthy functioning while conscious, with the exception of over-breathing during times of rest. This irregularity was understood at the time to be psychosomatic.

Exhaustion was sited as the cause of ARDS but further interviews and examination on October 12th found Mr. Baker to be experiencing a broader neurological condition, leading to the degeneration of his involuntary responses and eventually autonomic reflexes. Mr. Baker failed a test of monosynaptic reflexes and pupil dilation, before passing both tests during concentrated efforts. The display of voluntary control over involuntary response was anomalous. Upon this finding, Mr. Baker was transferred to the neurological wing of the Mayo clinic of Minnesota for closer study.

A research team led by Dr. Simon Hill, concluded that 13 days after his collapse in the Barnes Jewish lobby, Baker was now under full voluntary control of all monosynaptic reflexes. In addition, he had lost his involuntary epiglottal swallowing response and unconscious lung functioning, rendering him dependent on a ventilator for sleep. Arterial Blood Gas analysis continued to show 100% SpO2. Prolonged rapid breathing episodes with full SpO2 led to an over saturation of oxygen in cellular tissue and a critical imbalance of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Dr. Hill prescribed moderate aerobic exercise to address oxygen over saturation and to reengage the reflexes and lungs.

While jumping rope two days into his training on October 26th, 2010, the subject caught fire, was quickly engulfed and after a period of less than one minute, reduced to ash. Witnesses of this event include Dr. Hill, RN Michelle Davis, and resident Paresh Rana.

Cause of death: Spontaneous Human Combustion.
Correlating factors: Over-saturation of oxygen in cell tissue, imbalance of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and ignition by static flash fire."