Superhero Joey: Five-year-old fights moyamoya disease

It’s been said that not all heroes wear capes — but Joey Gallagher owns several. The five-year-old has already amassed a collection of superhero gear, from a Superman Halloween costume to a t-shirt emblazoned with the Batman logo. Yet even the most diehard comic book fan would likely admit that feats like flying, leaping tall buildings and fighting bad guys don’t hold a candle to the challenges this little boy has already surmounted. Just last June, Joey was out of town with his family when he had what his parents, Leila and Scott, feared was a seizure. Clinicians in the emergency department dismissed the event as heat exhaustion in the athletic, seemingly healthy boy. But it wasn’t long before he experienced another, full-blown, seizure during a tee-ball game back home in Kansas City.After he was rushed to the hospital, an MRI scan revealed an old stroke on Joey’s brain and an even scarier diagnosis: Joey had moyamoya disease. In this rare but very serious condition, the walls of the carotid arteries that supply blood to the brain become thickened and narrowed, which can increase the risk of blood clots and, in turn, stroke. Making connections Ignoring well-meaning warnings from their Kansas City physician not to “Google” the condition, Joey’s parents soon happened upon a YouTube video chronicling another Kansas boy’s experiences with moyamoya disease. Although it had been years since that child’s treatment at Boston Children’s Hospital, Leila and Scot...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories childhood stroke Dr. Edward Smith Dr. Michael Scott moyamoya Moyamoya Disease Program Source Type: news