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Newswise DALLAS May 7, 2014 Tom Guynes considers himself a living miracle. Hes been treated for a typically fatal form of fast-spreading cancer, congestive heart failure, and a hernia all in the past two years. So when he suffered a stroke the morning of Nov. 24, 2013, both he and his wife Nan feared the worst.
Im just thankful that I came here, Mr. Guynes said. The people at UTSouthwestern Medical Center have done wonders, and I think my life has been saved several times here.
Mr. Guynes, 68, of Farmersville, Texas, credits the fast action and coordination of the stroke team at UTSouthwestern with minimizing damage to his brain from the stroke and, most importantly, saving his life.
The perfect harmony of rapid evaluation, testing, and expert treatment for Mr. Guynes stroke that took place that day put into action protocols developed as part of UTSouthwesterns recent certification as an Advanced Comprehensive Stroke Center, the first and only such center in North Texas. This recognition by The Joint Commission is the highest level of certification for stroke care. His treatment also utilized a new telemedicine program in which UTSouthwestern specialists advise partner hospitals, in this case a hospital in McKinney, on the best treatment for stroke patients.
We partner with other hospitals and provide services to the patients with complex conditions who are transferred here, such as Mr. Guynes, said Dr. Jonathan White, the neurosurgeon who performed the procedure. We work as a multidisciplinary team to provide the absolute best possible outcome patients can have.
An endovascular procedure that only a few stroke centers in Texas are qualified to do was recommended by the vascular neurologist who evaluated Mr. Guynes, Dr. Alejandro Magadan, Assistant Professor of Neurology & Neurotherapeutics. Dr. Magadan thought Mr. Guynes was an excellent candidate for removal of his blood clot through a procedure that involves sucking out the clot with catheter-based surgical tools to restore blood flow to the brain.
On a CT scan, I saw that he had a clot that would lead to a large stroke. His clinical exam suggested a smaller stroke, but the location of the clot meant his stroke would continue to expand to two-thirds of the left side of his brain, causing a very severe and disabling stroke, said Dr. Magadan. Our goal was to keep the stroke from getting bigger, and that is what we did.
Not only was stroke damage minimized, but Mr. Guynes quick recovery and lack of permanent disabilities amazed the neurosurgical team.
Continued here:
Innovative Neurosurgery Led to Stroke Patient's Remarkable Recovery