Derek Hough Says Wife Hayley Erbert Will Need Skull Implant After Emergency Craniectomy: ‘Nothing Short of a Miracle’

Derek Hough has shared an update on his wife Hayley Erbert’s recovery following her “emergency craniectomy.”

“Her recovery process has been nothing short of a miracle,” he said Dancing with the stars the judge, 38, wrote on Instagram on Friday.

Although “Hayley is doing well,” she “still has a way to go,” Hough wrote.

Erbert, 29, will need another operation in the next few weeks that will include a skull implant, the dancer explained. The skull implant will “replace the piece [of the skull] which was removed during the craniectomy,” he continued.

“It will return the skull to its natural shape and protect the brain from injury,” Hough wrote.

Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert in Washington DC

Derek Hough/ Instagram

The TV personality thanked followers and fans for their recent support.

“This past week has been a challenging journey for us due to a life-threatening event that suddenly entered our lives,” Hough continued. “It was a time filled with uncertainty and fear, from living our dreams on stage to a nightmare in an instant.”

Hough and Erbert are “filled with hope and relief” after the latest update, he wrote.

The medical emergency became “a profound reminder of how fragile life can be and how quickly things can change,” he continued.

“But it also showed us the incredible strength and resilience that lies within us and the strength of the community that supports us,” Hough wrote. “We cannot express enough gratitude to each of you for your unwavering support, messages, prayers, and undeniable loving energy that we have both felt during this time.”

“While this is not the holiday season we envisioned, we are incredibly grateful to have it. We look forward to cherishing these moments with a deeper appreciation for life and the people in it,” Hough concluded.

Hough’s Instagram post included a video of him and Erbert walking together on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Erbert was suffering from symptoms of a cranial hematoma after their Symphony of Dance tour ended there.

Julianne Hough is asking for prayers after brother Derek Hough’s wife Hayley Erbert was hospitalized

Hough announced that Erbert was hospitalized and rushed into emergency surgery on December 7.

“At the end of last night’s tour in Washington, DC, my wife Hayley became disoriented and was taken to the hospital,” he wrote at the time. “She was diagnosed with a cranial hematoma due to a ruptured blood vessel and required an emergency craniectomy. She is in a stable condition.”

Hough has since provided additional information on his wife’s condition and thanked fans for their help and encouragement following the surgery.

Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert on “The Kelly Clarkson” show.

Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal via Getty

Derek Hough’s wife Hayley Erbert undergoes emergency craniectomy — what you need to know about brain surgery

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Hough and Erbert married in August and became engaged in June 2022.

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Source: HIS Education