BALTIMORE – In recent years, the number of strokes among younger people has increased.
According to the CDC, stroke deaths among middle-aged Americans during the pandemic were at their highest level in two decades.
But a Baltimore man recently learned that this is not the only reason for the upward trend.
“I felt like I was going to stop breathing. I literally told myself I’m about to die. It’s check out time,” said stroke survivor Leonard Boxdale.
Boxdale didn’t think he would be alive to tell this story. In July, he suffered a massive stroke. He’s a truck driver and happened to be at home in the middle of the night when it happened.
“I was sleeping. I woke up to go to the bathroom and I couldn’t get out of bed. I was holding on to the commode and trying to get up and she just said, ‘Baby, just stay there,'” Boxdale says.
His wife Brenda saved his life the first time.
“My wife was able to call the police within three minutes. The ambulance arrived within five minutes and I was in surgery within thirty minutes,” Boxdale added.
He says his surgeon, Dr. Paul Singh, saved his life the second time.
“He had a severe blockage on the right side of his brain and an abnormality in the carotid artery. So we had to act quickly. ‘Time is brain’ is the dogma we live by,” explained Dr Singh.
Boxdale is only 41 years old and not a typical stroke patient.
“He’s in good shape. He doesn’t have the typical risk factors for stroke and you would never guess he had a stroke,” Dr. Singh said.
Dr. Singh’s surgical team at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center had to remove the blood clot. Boxdale had a carotid tissue lesion that led to his stroke.
“Carotid membranes are a rare cause of stroke, but we look for them in young patients who have no other risk factors. More specifically, it is an abnormality of your carotid artery,” said Dr. Singh.
In a second operation, Dr. Singh inserted a stent to prevent another stroke.
Boxdale’s age and fitness level probably contributed to his quick recovery.
“He had to recover from the first stroke, remove the blood clot from his brain and recover, and miraculously he did well. The morning after the procedure, he was one of our few patients who was still able to walk up and down in the intensive care unit,” said Dr Singh.
Boxdale is happy to be healthy again so quickly because he needs all his energy for his granddaughter Violet. He is grateful to his medical team and his wife Brenda.
“If my wife hadn’t acted so quickly, I would probably be either in need of care or dead,” Boxdale said.
Boxdale will have to undergo further surgery and have another stent inserted to hopefully prevent another stroke.
