Munson Medical Center performed 2 stroke surgeries simultaneously ahead of Stroke Awareness Month

TRAVERSE CITY — May is Stroke Awareness Month and it’s important to act fast when you see signs of this serious health condition. At Munson Medical Center in Traverse City, their Comprehensive Stroke Center is the only one of its kind in Michigan.

“Somewhat of a unique situation, but it happens where we got two strokes at the same time,” said Interventional Neurologist and Munson Healthcare Comprehensive Stroke Program Medical Director David Rosenbaum-HaLevi, M.D.

Two stroke patients rushed to Munson Medical Center back in April 2024. This might have caused an issue for some, but not for Munson’s state of the art Comprehensive Stroke Center.

“Strokes are permanent, devastating injuries,” said Dr. Rosenbaum-HaLevi, “so they take top priority. So we cleared the other room, which is normally used for other procedures, and we took turns.”

With back to back icono imaging machines connected by a common control room, it’s the only one of its kind in Michigan and one of few in the country. Both patients were operated on at the same time and the procedures were complete in under 20 minutes.

“We treat around 120 thrombectomies a year. So when you do the math, statistically, the chances of having exactly two at the same time is rare,” said Dr. Rosenbaum-HaLevi. “You lose about two million brain cells per minute in situations of a stroke. So time is really important and not to downplay symptoms. If someone suspects that they’re having a stroke, call 911 right away.”

With strokes, that care starts before they even get to the hospital and advancements in technology have paved the way for precise and quick action. Through artificial intelligence, doctors and technicians can determine the size and severity of a clot so patients can get to the operating room as soon as they make it to the hospital.

“And we can see all scans for patients in real time anywhere”, said Clinical Stroke Program Liaison Lexi Carroll, P.A. “So for this particular instance, we had two patients that came from outside facilities. They hit our our trauma bay doors within 5 minutes of each other. They both were large vessel occlusions. We knew it before the patients got here because we saw it on our visual platform here. And, you know, the beautiful thing about knowing what the the diagnosis are before they get here is we can call family, we can get consent.”

“Four years ago, these types of treatments were not available in northern Michigan,” said Endovascular/ Cerebrovascular Neurosurgeon and Surgical Director Gary B. Rajah, M.D. “The patients were flown downstate and that means time. That means money. That means patients being away from their families. That’s something we had. Munson Health Care wanted to fix, we wanted to bring the care to the patients. We have the ability we have physicians and teams that can treat two patients simultaneously and give them both a chance at having the best outcomes. I think that’s a special thing reserved for levels of care at facilities like this.”

And that’s exactly what Munson Medical Center provided; with both patients now recovered and functionally independent thanks to the quick working Stroke Center team.

For more information on Munson’s Comprehensive Stroke Center and to find out more about what to look out for in cases of a stroke, click here.