Kathryn's Story

“Days before, Kathryn had awakened with a blinding headache before suffering a stroke. Thanks to the quick action of her family, Kathryn recovered and is here to tell her story. (Annandale, stroke patient, age 50)”

The phone had slipped out of Kathryn Queck’s hand and she was muttering repeatedly that she was fine. But when her daughter, Anna, looked at her mom’s face, she knew something was wrong. The left side was drooping and Kathryn’s speech was slurred.

‘Mom, are you OK?’

Fortunately, they were just outside of St. Cloud so Kathryn’s husband, Tom, drove to the emergency room at St. Cloud Hospital. Hospital staff quickly performed a series of tests confirming that Kathryn was suffering a stroke. Kathryn was taken to the endovascular surgery suite to receive life-saving treatments that removed the clot blocking an artery in her brain and placed a stent to open the blocked carotid artery by Endovascular Neurologist Muhammad Fareed Suri, MD.

“It is so important to be treated as soon as possible if having a stroke,” said Kathryn, 50, who had awakened with a blinding headache a few days before her medical emergency in September 2012. Kathryn, from Annandale, made a nearly full recovery. “I don’t think it could’ve been any faster.”

If experiencing stroke symptoms, it is critical to receive medical attention right away. The longer a person goes without treatment, the greater damage the brain sustains and disabilities can result.

“It really hit me at Christmas when looking around at everyone gathered together how lucky we were to still have Mom present,” said Anna.

“The care at St. Cloud Hospital was excellent,” Kathryn said. “Having Dr. Suri’s expertise is such a blessing.”