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| SUNDAY, APRIL 17, 2022
From Emergency Room to Surgery quick actions saves stroke victim’s life It all happened so quickly. By Dawn Chipman
Special to The Republican
Tyana DeJesus was near the end of her shift at a local shoe store when she suddenly went down on one knee because she thought she was going to pass out. The 22-year-old noticed her hearing was muffled. She was seeing double and couldn’t move the left side of her body. While her coworkers tried to help, her manager called DeJesus’ mom, Jacqueline, telling her, “Something’s not right, something’s not right, Tyana’s words are slurring.” After arriving at the store, DeJesus’ mom immediately drove her to Baystate Medical Center’s Harold Grinspoon & Diane Troderman Adult Emergency Department. DeJesus remembers feeling so sick upon arrival at the ED that she vomited in her mask. She couldn’t even speak correctly or walk. “I’m grateful that Baystate took action as fast as they could. I was the priority,” she said. Emergency Medicine physician, Dr. Jessica Patel, examined DeJesus and ordered an immediate CT (Computed Tomography) scan of her head. The director of Neurointerventional Surgery, neurologist Dr. Ennis J. Duffis, reviewed the scan, which showed a blood clot in DeJesus’ brain was blocking the main artery that carries blood to the back of the brain. “Tyana had what we call a basilar artery occlusion, which is one of the most severe kind of strokes a person can have,” Dr. Duffis said. If left untreated, a stroke may leave a patient paralyzed, cause the patient to slip into a
“Having a stroke changed my perspective and it changed the type of person and the type of nurse that I wanted to be.” TYANA DEJESUS
(ABOVE PHOTOS OF TYANA DEJESUS - COURTESY OF BAYSTATE HEALTH)
coma or even result in death. “When they told me I was having a stroke, I looked at my mom and we were both crying. I asked my doctors to please not let me die. I haven’t lived my life. I haven’t achieved any of my goals,” DeJesus said. Dr. Duffis recommended that DeJesus have a thrombectomy, a procedure in which a catheter is inserted through an artery in the groin allowing doctors to reach the clot and remove it. “Dr. Duffis told my mom that if it was his daughter, he would want her to have the procedure as quickly as possible,” she said. It was all DeJesus’s mom needed to hear, and she gave permission to have the procedure done. There wasn’t time to wait for a patient transporter to arrive, so Dr. Duffis wheeled her to surgery on his own. “I wheeled Tyana to surgery because time is brain,” Dr. Duffis said. “Tyana’s mother deserves a lot of credit for taking action and getting Tyana to our ED right away. When it comes to strokes, the faster you act, the less damage is done.” DeJesus said lying on the gurney and being wheeled into surgery was like what you see in the movies. “They’re pushing you and you’re looking up and all you see is lights going by and nurses and doctors around you. I remember them telling me not to worry, that they would take care of me,” she said. Because Baystate Health care teams can communicate quickly and coordinate care across departments, the procedure was done right away. Thankfully, the surgery team was able to remove the clot before it did any permanent damage and she was moved to the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) to continue her recovery. SEE SURVIVOR, PAGE D2
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“My whole family was outside in the parking lot. They were waving and smiling and all I could hear was them all shouting,
‘We love you! We can’t wait to see you! You did so good,’” DeJesus said.
Top: Dr. Ennis J. Duffis, Director of Neurointerventional Surgery, Department of Neurology, Baystate Medical Center Bottom: Dr. Jessica Patel, Emergency Medicine, Baystate Medical Center. (PHOTOS COURTESY OF BAYSTATE HEALTH)
SURVIVOR CONTINUED FROM PAGE D1
“I believe this ability to deliver advanced, coordinated care led to Tyana’s full recovery,” Dr. Duffis said. “Dr. Patel and Dr. Duffis came to visit me and see how I was feeling,” DeJesus said, noting after the surgery that her vision, speech and hearing were all normal again. Dr. Duffis remembers the look on her face and how amazed DeJesus was with her recovery. “Seeing that was very gratifying. I always put myself in the shoes of the patient and think of them as I would a family member,” Dr. Duffis said. “I try to keep my patients informed every step of the way, including
how the procedure went and what to expect next. That’s what I would expect from my physician if I were in the patient’s shoes.” Because the hospital was not allowing visitors at the time because of COVID-19, DeJesus found herself doing FaceTime with her family. “My whole family was outside in the parking lot. They were waving and smiling and all I could hear was them all shouting, ‘We love you! We can’t wait to see you! You did so good,’” DeJesus said. And it wasn’t just her family cheering her on. “Since I couldn’t have visitors, the staff were my visitors,” DeJesus said. “My nurses really took care of me and were in and out of the room all the time. Everyone was just really nice. I felt like all the nurses and the
PCTs took care of me as if I was their own.” Dr. Duffis noted it is rare to see this kind of stroke in someone so young. In hopes of finding the cause of DeJesus’ stroke, several tests were done while she was in the hospital recovering. Doctors found that she had a patent foramen ovale, which is an opening between the right and left sides of the heart. Although everyone is born with this opening, it closes on its own soon after birth for most people. For DeJesus, it did not close, and her doctors determined that this opening in her heart was the cause of her stroke. “We believe that a blood clot formed on the right side of the heart, then traveled across the opening to the left side of the heart and then up into the brain,” Dr. Duffis said.
In a follow-up procedure, cardiologist Dr. Evan Lau and his cardiac surgery team, successfully closed this opening in her heart. DeJesus said she feels great and is back at work. “Having a stroke changed my perspective and it changed the type of person and the type of nurse that I want to be,” said DeJesus, who was in school with goals of becoming a nurse before her stroke. She comes from a family of nurses. Her mom, grandma and some of her cousins are all nurses. “Just being at Baystate, I knew that I wanted to help people like the Baystate Health caregivers helped me. Before my stroke, I thought I wanted to be a nurse, but now I know that I want to be a nurse,” DeJesus said. “I think it’s amazing that she wants
to be a nurse and I’m just glad that I was able to play a small part in keeping her on track to becoming a healthcare provider,” Dr. Duffis said. Dr. Duffis noted it is important to know the signs of a stroke. Remember the acronym B. E. F.A.S.T. : B stands for balance (abnormal or loss), E stands for eye-vision loss/double vision, F stands for face drooping, A stands for arm weakness, S stands for speech difficulty and T stands for time to call 911.
To learn more about Baystate Health’s lifesaving stroke care visit BaystateHealth.org/Stroke
STROKE MONTH
2022 Virtual Lecture Series Join us for all or part of the free virtual series to learn about the latest advances in stroke care. There will be time for questions and answers.
WEDNESDAY l MAY 11 l 6 - 7 PM Rajiv Padmanabhan, MD – Neurologist
STROKES CAN HAPPEN AT ANY AGE
Rajiv Padmanabhan, MD
Being young doesn’t rule you out for having a stroke. Strokes in young people have increased 40 percent in the past few decades. But the majority of strokes happen over age 55. Join Dr. Rajiv Padmanabhan, neurologist, Baystate Neurology, Assistant Professor, UMass Chan Medical School-Baystate, for a discussion about strokes at all ages, and the ways to prevent a stroke.
THURSDAY l MAY 12 l 6 - 7 PM Heydi Flores Podadera, MD – Neurologist WOMEN, DO YOU KNOW YOUR RISK FOR STROKE?
Heydi Flores Podadera, MD
Stroke kills twice as many women as breast cancer does according to the CDC. Join Dr. Heydi Flores Podadera, neurologist, Baystate Neurology, for a discussion of stroke specific to women, the factors that contribute to strokes in women and how to prevent a stroke from happening.
Visit BaystateHealth.org/Stroke-Events to register.
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BaystateHealth.org CS13790
Healthy Habits
Alleviate everyday
can become part of your daily routine
A
Aches & Pains P
ain occurs for a variety of reasons. Pain may be a byproduct of overuse of a particular part of the body, or it could signal an underlying illness or condition. Sometimes injury is at the heart of aches and pains. Daily aches and pains may be seen as a normal byproduct of aging, but that does not mean aging individuals should simply accept pain. In fact, daily discomfort can be remedied with some relatively easy techniques.
exercising for the first time or performing a new activity. Allan H. Goldfarb, Ph.D., a professor and exercise physiologist at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, says when you do the same activity again and again, your muscles will start to get used to it and soreness will be reduced. Don't give up on exercise too soon, but include off days in your routine to give your body time to become more acclimated to increased physical activity.
Get moving
Get tested
Lower back pain is common among adults, and most often appears when individuals are in their mid-30s and 40s. Strength training and cardio exercises can remedy this pain because these activities increase blood flow and help build core muscles, which support the spine. Support can alleviate pressure on the discs in the back. Exercising also will build strength in other areas of the body and support joints.
Speak with your doctor if you have chronic pain in one or more areas. Such pain may be a sign of osteoarthritis, an inflammatory condition that is associated with aging. Rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune conditions can cause aches and pains as well, leaving the joints and tendons inflamed and a body with low energy. A doctor can rule out these conditions or
Sitting and standing with optimal posture can help the body feel better. The body is designed to stand in a neutral position that stacks the pelvis, head and torso, according to DMC Healthcare. When posture is out of whack, this puts undue stress on muscles, leading to pain. Dropping your head or shoulders also can create unnecessary tension that leads to headaches. Good posture can alleviate this.
Increase Stretching and Movement Exercises Incorporate stretching and movement exercises like yoga or tai chi into your daily regimen. These activities slowly stretch areas of the body and can improve range of motion and flexibility over time. These are just a few ways to address common aches and pains. Medical interventions, physical therapy, occupational therapy and ergonomics assessments, and massage therapy also may help to alleviate aches and pains.
person’s habits can have a strong impact on his or her overall health. Unhealthy habits like smoking and living a sedentary lifestyle can increase a person’s risk for various conditions and diseases. On the flip side, healthy habits like eating a nutritious diet and getting enough sleep can bolster a person’s immune system and reduce his or her risk for various ailments. Some healthy habits, like daily exercise, can be time-consuming. Busy adults may not have time to exercise vigorously each day, though the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services urges men and women to find time for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week. But not all healthy habits take up time. In fact, adults can incorporate various healthy practices into their daily routines without skipping a beat.
Take the stairs Taking the stairs instead of the elevator can have a profound effect on overall health. According to Duke University, climbing just two flights of stairs combined per day can contribute to six pounds of weight loss over the course of a single year. In addition, a study from the North American Meno-
ages of 71 and 93 who walked more than a quarter mile per day had half the incidence of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease as men who walked less. A 15-minute walk around the neighborhood Drink more water each morning coupled with a 15-minute walk after dinner The Centers for Disease can help adults dramatically Control and Prevention notes improve their overall health. that water helps the body maintain a normal tempera- Eat more greens ture, lubricates and cushions Eating more greens is joints, protects the spinal another healthy habit that cord and other sensitive doesn’t require a major tissues, and helps to rid the body of waste through urina- overhaul of an individual’s lifestyle. The U.S. Departtion, perspiration and bowel ment of Agriculture notes movements. Adults who are thirsty can choose water over that dark green leafy vegesoda or other sugary beverag- tables, such as spinach, are rich in vitamins A,C, E, and es. The CDC notes that sugK. The Mayo Clinic notes ary beverages like soda and sports drinks contain calories that vitamin E alone can help people maintain their but little nutritional value, making water a healthier way vision and promote a healthy reproductive system while for individuals to quench also improving the health of their thirst. the blood, brain and skin. The also notes that green Go for daily walks USDA vegetables contain very little carbohydrates, sodium and Walking benefits the body in myriad ways. For example, cholesterol. Adults won’t the Harvard School of Public have to reinvent the dietary wheel to incorporate more Health notes that women who walk 30 minutes per greens into their diets, and the results of doing so can day can reduce their risk of stroke by 20 percent and have a significant, positive potentially by 40 percent if effect on their overall health. they walk briskly. In addition, The right habits can help researchers at the University people live healthier lives, of Virginia Health System and such habits need not refound that men between the quire any major life changes. pause Society found that stair climbing can help postmenopausal women reduce their risk for osteoporosis and help them lower their blood pressure.
DAD IS T R A I L I NG OFF I N TH E M I DD LE OF HIS
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Certain pains arise when
help you get the therapy and medications you need.
Hear the Sounds of Nature!
Practice good posture
Exercise more often
SUNDAY, APRIL 17, 2022 | D3
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Mental Health | Addiction | Crisis | BHN TeleCare
Get Well. We Can Help. Call BHN today at 413-BHN-WORK (413-246-9675) 24-Hour Crisis Line: 413-733-6661 bhninc.org
KNOW WHERE AL ZHE IME R’S AND ALL DEMENTIA HIDE . New problems with words or speaking is a warning sign of Alzheimer’s. Learn more at alz.org/10signs 24/7 Helpline 800.272.3900 3164567-01