Full circle: From moyamoya patient to intern

It’s the last day of Justin Doo’s research internship in the Department of Neurology at Boston Children’s Hospital and he’s eager to join the team for a celebratory scoop of ice cream at JP Licks. Before he leaves, he meets with his supervisor, Dr. Laura Lehman — but they both know this isn’t a final goodbye. The 18-year-old will see Dr. Lehman again within the year, because he isn’t just her intern. He’s also her patient. Unlike most summer interns, Justin has already spent plenty of time at Boston Children’s — more than a decade, in fact. When he was 7 years old, his parents brought him to the hospital for an evaluation of his frequent headaches. But a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan revealed that what everyone believed to be migraines were actually symptoms of a rare but serious cerebrovascular condition called moyamoya disease. “I didn’t really understand what was going on at the time,” remembers Justin. “I just knew that my parents were crying.” Justin meets with Dr. Laura Lehman. Pial synangiosis: A groundbreaking surgery In this disorder, 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. Because moyamoya is a progressive condition, the longer it goes untreated, the more a child’s chances of having a stroke increase. For this reason, Dr. R. Michael Scott, now Boston Children’s neurosurgeon-in-chief-emeritus, recommended s...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories Dr. Darren Orbach Dr. Edward Smith Dr. Laura Lehman Dr. Michael Scott moyamoya Moyamoya Disease Program Pial Synangiosis Source Type: news