Denice DeAntonio’s Patient Story
Neurosurgeon: Craig H. Johnson, MD, FAANS(L), and Raymond C. Truex Jr, MD, FAANS, The Reading Hospital and Medical Center, Reading, Pa.
Patient: Denice DeAntonio, age 44, Hemorrhagic Stroke
On Saturday, December 6, 2008, I left my home to pick up a prescription at a local pharmacy. My family doctor had diagnosed me with a sinus infection but, that day, my headache became unbearable. While at the pharmacy, I had a seizure and was rushed to The Reading Hospital and Medical Center (TRHMC).
At first, the ER doctors were not sure what was wrong. After a CT scan, it was determined that I suffered a brain bleed, a hemorrhagic stroke in the left side of my brain.
It was thought that I might have a ruptured aneurysm in my brain. Arrangements were made for me to be transferred to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.
Almost simultaneously, the weather changed abruptly, preventing my transfer to Philadelphia by ground or air, and my condition rapidly and significantly deteriorated. At that point, neurosurgeons, Dr. Johnson and his partner, Dr. Truex, performed emergency surgery including a decompressive craniectomy.
I am very happy to report that after a month long stay at TRHMC and a 3-month stay at a rehabilitation hospital, I returned home on March 27, 2009. Subsequently, I had a spinal fluid shunt placed for hydrocephalus followed by replacement of my skull flap in early July 2009. Since then I have started writing and have had two articles published, in Stroke Connection and Advance for Nurses. I am here today because of the skill and dedication of Dr. Johnson and Dr. Truex. As a small token of my appreciation, I framed my article that was published in Stroke Connection magazine and presented it to Dr. Johnson in his office.
