A teenage girl who was "broken in half" and told she might never walk again is back on her feet after a "miracle" recovery.

Aliza Rae AliKhan, 13, was rushed to Southampton Children's Hospital (SCH) for emergency spinal surgery after a freak horse riding accident last August.

The schoolgirl, from Dorset, had been riding when her horse was spooked and fell on top of her, leaving her with a fractured lumbar vertebra.

Seven months later, and after two operations, she is back at school and back riding again.

Evan Davies, a consultant spinal surgeon for one of her operations, said: "When Aliza arrived in the hospital, she was, for lack of a better word, broken in half – her top half wasn’t connected to the bottom half.

“I was concerned that the damage had already been done, and my first thought was that this girl might never walk again."

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Mum, Thirza AliKhan, said: “It was a long day, a day I will never forget. We didn’t know what was going to happen, and I suppose it didn’t really hit us until the next morning.

“We just needed to stay positive for the sake of Aliza Rae. She was conscious and she was talking, so we just focused on that and went from there."

Aliza Rae was transferred to the paediatric intensive care unit where her bespoke rehabilitation regime commenced within 48 hours of her surgery, led by the Southampton Children’s Integrated Rehabilitation Team (SCIRT).

She was discharged from the hospital shortly after her 13th birthday.

Following her ordeal, Aliza Rae said: "I want to give something back to everyone who looked after me.

"I remember being told I might never walk again, but I had this amazing team, my ‘dream team’, and they never gave up on me.

"They became like friends, not just doctors and physios. They helped me believe in myself.”

Eliza Rae (second on right) with (L to R) Faiysal AliKhan (father), Jo Newman (spinal cord injury nurse specialist), Thirza AliKhan (mother) and Evan Davies (consultant spinal surgeon) (Image: Southampton Children’s Hospital)

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She is now planning a fundraising event for the hospital and the teams that helped her.

Thirza, added: "The team were amazing from day one.

"Positive, supportive and really connected with Aliza Rae – they had the right balance of pushing her and knowing when it was too much.

"We’ll forever be grateful for everything that everyone at SCH has done for Aliza Rae."