BALTIMORE — The rise of strokes in younger people has grown in recent years.
According to the CDC, stroke deaths among middle-aged Americans were the highest in two decades during the pandemic.
But a Baltimore man recently learned that's not the only reason we're seeing an uptick.
"I felt like I stopped breathing. I literally told myself, I'm about to die. It's check-out time," said Leonard Boxdale, a stroke survivor.
Boxdale didn't think he'd be alive to share this story. He suffered a massive stroke in July. He's a truck driver who happened to be at home when it happened in the middle of the night.
"I was sleeping. I woke up to use the bathroom, and I couldn't get out of the bed. I'm holding onto the dresser trying to get myself up and she was like 'babe, 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 came 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 major blockage on the right side of his brain and he had an abnormality in the carotid artery. So, we had to act quickly. 'Time is brain' is the dogma that we live by," Dr. Singh explained.
Boxdale is just 41 years old, not your typical stroke patient.
"He's in shape. He doesn't have the typical risk factors for stroke, and you would never think he was someone who 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 web that led to his stroke.
"Carotid webs are a rare cause of stroke, but we look for them in patients that are young and don't have the other risk factors. Specifically, what it is is an abnormality of your carotid artery," said Dr. Singh.
In a second surgery, Dr. Singh put in a stent to prevent another stroke.
Boxdale's age and fitness level likely contributed to his speedy recovery.
"Him recovering from the initial stroke, pulling the clot out of the brain, having recovered was what had to get through first, and he did miraculously well. He was one of our few patients walking around the ICU the next morning after his procedure," Dr. Singh said.
Boxdale's happy to be healthy so quickly, because he needs every bit of that energy for his granddaughter Violet. He's grateful to his medical team and his wife Brenda.
"If it wasn't for my wife acting as quickly as she did I would probably be either a vegetable or dead," said Boxdale.
Boxdale will have to undergo one more surgery, having another stent put in to hopefully prevent another stroke.
