Oh come on, saving your life is the absolute minimum. 100% recovery is the only goal in stroke and needs to be shouted from the rooftops. This is just accepting the
tyranny of low expectations.
‘The procedure saved my life’: stroke victims call for thrombectomies to be made widely available
A ‘life-saving’ procedure called a thrombectomy instantly cuts a stroke victim’s chance of paralysis - but nearly four in five patients who need one don’t get it, according to the Stroke Association
Stroke victims are campaigning for a life-saving treatment to be available to anyone who needs it.
A mechanical thrombectomy involves a stent being used to manually remove large stroke-causing blood clots from the brain via a catheter inserted into the patient’s groin.
It has been described as a “game-changing” procedure, instantly cutting the chance of disabilities like paralysis, visual impairment and communication difficulties - and even saving lives.
But a new report by the Stroke Association warns of a “postcode lottery” for the treatment, with only a quarter (25%) of thrombectomy centres currently operating 24/7 services.
It warns that nearly 80% of patients who needed a thrombectomy in England missed out in 2020/21 - and that if the treatment rate stays at these levels, 47,112 stroke patients in England would miss out on the acute stroke treatment over the next seven years.
But what difference does the procedure make to those who receive it? And how have those who couldn’t have it been affected?
‘The procedure saved my life’
Jordan Wood, 26, from Stoke on Trent, had a stroke aged just 24, and said a thrombectomy saved his life.
After the procedure, Jordan was able to move his left side again and his speech had also returned. Alongside this, doctors had told him that it would take up to a month to be able to walk properly again, but it actually returned on the same day.
Jordan said: “As soon as I came out of the operation, I knew it had been a success. I was able to talk and move my left side again. They did inform me that it may take up to 30 days for me to be walking again. However, within hours of them saying this I was walking up and down the ward and had seemed to make a remarkable recovery.”
Jordan now wants to help raise awareness of just how vital the procedure is.
He added: “Without the thrombectomy I am convinced that I would’ve never regained the use of my left side again, which would have left me confined to a wheelchair. I just remember thinking how can I leave my three year old son without an active dad.
“The procedure saved my life and I think it’s disgraceful that anyone who suffers a stroke like me is not being offered it. I think anyone who suffers such a horrendous thing should be offered the thrombectomy and it needs to be available to all hospitals in the UK.”
‘Frustrated and shocked’
Paul Smith, 43, from Liverpool, suffered a stroke in April 2018, but was told no one was available to perform a thrombectomy as it was Easter Sunday and therefore a bank holiday.
His wife, Jane, said: “We were told that the next 48 hours were critical for Paul. I kept asking what do we do next, but I really wasn’t hearing what they were saying. We were completely in the time frame for a thrombectomy but no one was available to do it – I was massively frustrated and shocked.”
Paul then spent over three weeks in hospital having physio and speech and language therapy, which would continue for six months, while he was also fed blended foods and had to use thickeners for his drinks due to issues with swallowing.
Similarly, Phil Woodford, 51, was told that the thrombectomy procedure wasn’t available at the weekend back in 2016.
Phil, who had been out cycling, was relaxing in the garden when he started to lose his speech and couldn’t see from his left eye.
After attending hospital, doctors discovered Phil had had a transient ischaemic attack (TIA) - a mini stroke - and went on to have a major stroke caused by a blood clot while in hospital.
He went on to spend four months in hospital and two months in a wheelchair after discharge, as he lost the use of his left side.
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