This blog was created to document our experience dealing with Bailey, our 16 year old daughter's stroke. Until September 15th, she was a perfectly healthy, active teenage girl. She is a junior in high school this year. She has a part time job, many friends and a busy social life. She is involved with the marching band, cross country skiing and the school theater group. Her class schedule reads like that of my nightmares - Honors classes, Advanced placement classes and even a "college in school" physics class. She has a smile that shows itself with the slightest of provocation. She is happy, easy going and a bit goofy. Generally, there was no reason to expect any health issues and definitely we would not ever have even thought a stroke was a possibility.

So, this is our story. I am hoping it will help others who experience this sort of misfortune to understand they are not alone. Maybe they are feeling the way we do and will take some comfort our story.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Another surprise in our diagnostic world

On day three in the Neuroscience Ward they finally got a copy of the MRI films from Children's Hospital.  Dr. Dove (Bay's Neurologist) had not seen them yet so Dr. Kirven asked him if he wanted to have a look.  I asked if I could see too - and of course they couldn't say no.  So, off we went to view the "films."

In hindsight this was not a very good idea.  The amount of damage to my girls brain versus how she seemed can not be reconciled in my brain.  How could she lose the use of 1/3 of the left side of her brain and still sit up, talk, laugh, and smile with that much damage?  This made no sense.

Of course when the neurologist looked at it what he saw was something entirely different.  I guess it was more like what he didn't see - a dissection.  He wasn't at all sure that what he was seeing was a dissection in either an artery or a vein.  So, he ordered another CT and CTA.

They did the CT/CTA and said that they still weren't positive that it was a dissection because it was possible that at the moment they did the CT/CTA it was being pushed closed from blood flow.  That being said, Dr. Dove was now saying that they thought she had a congenital defect in her inner carotid artery that had caused it to be compressed.

This new diagnosis didn't change the prognosis or treatment but it did change the amount of possible testing they would do.  Now they would have to did deeper to see if there was an underlying disease or condition that would effect other parts of her vascular system. 














































































































































+

No comments:

Post a Comment