MUSC Health: Stay Close to Home for Stroke Treatment and Care

Stay close to home for stroke treatment and care

MUSC Health Florence Medical Center’s Brain Attack Team (BAT) is on stand by 24/7 to respond to anyone brought to the hospital suspected of having a stroke

Pee Dee residents no longer have to leave the area for comprehensive stroke treatment and care. MUSC Health Florence Medical Center is the premiere comprehensive center in the region to provide a surgical procedure that removes clots from the brain of stroke patients. The therapy, along with the most advanced equipment, represents a multi-million-dollar investment by MUSC in area residents’ care. The availability of treatment close to home can make the difference between life and death and in how well a patient recovers, says Dr. Jay Dolia, medical stroke director and neuro-endovascular surgery director for MUSC Health Florence, a Primary Stroke Center designated by the Joint Commission.

Until recently, patients diagnosed with a stroke and whose condition made them ineligible for the clot-busting drug tPA had to be flown to Charleston, Myrtle Beach, or Columbia for surgery. “Rapid treatment is crucial,” Dolia says. “A person having a stroke loses 1.9 million brain cells every minute. It can mean the difference in whether you can hold a cup, a telephone, or your grandkids.” Unlike tPA, which must be given to a patient within 4 1/2 hours, the endovascular surgery can be performed up to 24 hours and involves the insertion of a catheter through the wrist or the groin to remove the clot. The therapy is one of several initiatives using stateof-the-art equipment. Artificial intelligence is used to read scans of patients’ brains before treatment, shaving valuable minutes off the time between a patient’s arrival and when treatment is started. “We can diagnose, confer with the patient’s family and treat well under the time set by national stroke care standards,” Dolia says. MUSC Health in Florence and Charleston are the first in South Carolina to implement an audiovisual system that allows a surgical team to consult in real-time with their counterparts in Charleston. For complex surgeries, the hospital also has a suite equipped with the latest robotic technology and cameras that provide the highest resolution available of the brain.

Dolia says his team is dedicated to care and recovery. “We work to figure out why the stroke occurred and to make sure it never happens again.”

Dr. Jay Dolia

For more information about stroke and stroke treatment, visit MUSChealth.org/florence.