Runner Who Suffered Stroke Back on Course

Jogger saved by Miami doctors returns to finish sprint

A runner is getting a second chance at the open road after doctors in Miami helped remove a dangerous clot in his brain. 
 
Chase Anderson, 29, was jogging in Key Biscayne nearly one year ago, on January 2, when he felt an odd sensation.

"I felt a sharp pain in the right side of my head. I was 28, young and healthy, I didn't think much about it at first," Anderson said. "But my left hand and arm started shaking uncontrollably, I looked down and realized I couldn't control my movements and then my left side just started to go numb and limp."
 
It was a stroke, caused by a blood clot in the brain that doctors believe started in his leg.
 
"I was on a 16-hour plane ride a few weeks prior and I guess I didn't move my legs enough and drink enough water and stuff," said Anderson.
 
Anderson was rushed to Mercy, the closest hospital, where he was given an intravenous clot busting drug. When that didn't work, he was quickly transferred to the Comprehensive Stroke Center at Jackson for a procedure called a "drip and ship."

"The clot was sitting right here at the top of his heart beat, preventing adequate blood flow going up towards the brain," explained Dr. Dileep Yavagal, with the University of Miami.

Yavagal had to work fast, performing the minimally invasive procedure with a tiny coil that removed the clot.  
 
"It is actually introduced from an artery in the groin, the corkscrew is put just beyond the clot that is blocking the artery, the whole device is gradually pulled along with the clot to be brought outside the artery and outside the body," said Yavagal of the delicate procedure.

For Anderson, whose simple job had turned into a life and death fight, the little coil restored blood flow and ended up preventing major damage to his brain.

Now back in Key Biscayne for the anniversary of his scary incident, Anderson is determined to complete his jog and reach the destination he couldn't get to last year, the lighthouse at Cape Florida.

"I just feel very fortunate, very blessed to be in Miami," Anderson said. "I feel like it was God's plan for me to be here and for me to encounter the physicians and medical personnel I encountered here."

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