STROKE SMART - TED LAUKEMANN - Penn State Health

Aug 26, 2023

STROKE SMART - TED LAUKEMANN - Penn State Health

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Content

2.35 -> >> It was New Year's Eve, a time of celebration for Ted Laukemann and his wife.

6.74 -> It turns out, the couple never got a chance to celebrate.

10.9 -> Here's Ted's journey.

12.91 -> [music] determination is what best describes 56-year-old Ted Laukemann.

19.59 -> >> We workout every day, seven days a week, my wife and I.

26.63 -> >> Ted's goal is simple.

28.28 -> He wants to get his life back.

31.079 -> >> I think he's doing amazing.

32.23 -> I think he is well beyond what he should be doing right now.

37.129 -> >> Ted has made significant progress in the last four months.

41.09 -> It was New Year's Eve four months ago; a night Ted and Debbie will never forget.

47.8 -> >> We were sitting at the slot machine, and he started feeling nauseated.

50.899 -> He said, "I don't feel right."

53.26 -> >> I got blurry vision and I got all numb and said to my wife, "Please get help."

61.51 -> >> Somebody came, put him in a wheelchair; got him to the office, started doing blood

65.6 -> pressure.

66.6 -> He's going; he's got his eyes squeezed shut -- he's going, "I need to get to the hospital."

71.289 -> They said, "Someone's coming."

72.499 -> >> Everything happened so fast, but I was in back on a gurney and I could hear them

81.079 -> talking, but I could not respond.

84.27 -> I thought I was checking out.

87.96 -> >> The EMS crew promptly brought him to Hershey, and it's pretty common for the ambulance crews

94.829 -> to call ahead and say they're bringing a suspected stroke patient.

98.009 -> Based on the evaluation, he was felt to have a severe stroke at the time when we first

102.31 -> met him.

103.59 -> He had significant problems with speech and his entire right side, his arm and his leg,

107.47 -> were flaccid; he couldn't move them at all, as well as completely numb.

111.579 -> So, a very severe stroke.

115.109 -> >> When I got there they had like 8 people in this little room all just fluttering about

120.34 -> him with tubes and just doing things.

124.729 -> And that's when I got scared.

126.45 -> I had no idea what -- what was happening.

128.96 -> I just thought he wasn't feeling well.

131.14 -> >> Under 90 minutes from when he had the initial symptoms, we gave him an IV clot-buster, it's

136.471 -> called TPA.

138.13 -> That is still the standard for most stroke patients, particularly the ones to where we're

142.5 -> concerned a clot is blocking up a blood vessel.

145.86 -> And that was his case. he had a blockage in the major back artery.

149.59 -> It's called the Basilar artery.

151.11 -> If you have a blockage in that artery, that is usually devastating.

155.25 -> About 80% of people will die.

157.47 -> >> Doctors took Ted into surgery to remove the clot.

161.26 -> >> They came out.

163.48 -> Said the clot started breaking up, so they backed up.

166.51 -> He's doing fine.

167.54 -> We went to see him; he started talking.

170.54 -> Everything was good.

171.7 -> This was New Year's Eve.

173.41 -> >> The initial procedure was largely successful, and he was dramatically better after the procedure.

180.2 -> Unfortunately, the next day he deteriorated again.

184.83 -> >> New Year's morning, I'm going to go with 5:00-ish.

188.72 -> >> I was going numb.

190.61 -> I slurred my words.

191.87 -> I couldn't talk.

192.95 -> I knew it was -- I was stroking again.

196.73 -> >> And he stroked again.

200.51 -> That scared me, because I thought, I got the miracle the first time; I can't ask for another

207.53 -> one.

208.53 -> And then the surgery took twice as long, so now we were scared.

212.28 -> >> We re-imaged him and the artery re-blocked, so he was taken back for a second procedure,

218.17 -> and again, very, very successful that they got, essentially, all of the blood vessels

221.88 -> open.

222.95 -> >> They said, with the stroke that he had, that he lost his coordination, his balance,

228.42 -> and then his speech and swallowing.

229.75 -> >> So, you feel nice and balanced?

231.57 -> >> Yeah.

232.57 -> >> Good.

233.57 -> >> Ted had his work cut out for him.

235.349 -> >> I want you to start off raising your arms straight out in front of you, and then put

239.05 -> it down.

240.489 -> >> He worked with physical, occupational, and speech therapists at Penn State Health

246.37 -> Rehabilitation Hospital.

248.61 -> >> The primary center of his brain that was affected by the stroke was his balance center.

252.68 -> So, today we worked a lot on his balance; his core strength.

257.729 -> >> Ted is proud of his accomplishments.

260.64 -> >> He came to me and said, "I want to do pushups before I leave."

264.25 -> And in my 11 years of practice, I have never had a patient in the hospital do pushups.

270.12 -> >> I was the only person here to do pushups ever.

275.15 -> >> He's doing great.

276.15 -> He has exceeded all of the expectations I would've ever had for him.

279.62 -> >> All right.

280.9 -> And go ahead.

282.82 -> >> Ted exceeded the expectations of therapists in other areas too.

287.52 -> >> So, we were using the BIOMES Integrated Therapeutic System, which we call BITS for

292.76 -> short, and basically, what we were working on is his visual scanning skills, also his

298.29 -> fine-motor coordination and accuracy of hitting the targets on the screen.

303.6 -> >> Breathe and relax.

305.06 -> >> With Ted, I had him hooked up to something called vital stimulation.

308.91 -> The vital stimulation machine is something that targets muscle movement and muscle contractions

313.92 -> to improve patient's swallows.

316.9 -> >> I couldn't swallow whole food, but I went from eating pureed food to whole food in one

326.97 -> week.

327.97 -> >> So, I want you to take three small sips in a row.

331.31 -> He is doing great.

333.13 -> Good strong, squeeze and swallow.

335.36 -> He's going out to eat steak dinners and he's drinking water completely fine without any

341.13 -> difficulties.

342.13 -> So, there's been a huge improvement since he was here.

344.8 -> >> We got out of here the very first -- [inaudible] put my walker to the side and said, "It's

353.31 -> time to walk by yourself with no help."

357.99 -> So, since then I've been walking by myself.

364.229 -> >> He's learned to jump.

365.229 -> He's learned to run.

366.229 -> He does jumping jacks.

368.03 -> He just wants to go, go, go until he gets it.

371.93 -> >> Ted wants to share his struggles and achievements with others, so he attends the Stroke Support

377.98 -> Group.

378.98 -> >> [Background laughter] my name's Ted Laukemann.

381.4 -> I had two strokes, one New Year's Eve; one New Year's Day of this year.

386.93 -> >> Wow.

387.93 -> >> So --

388.93 -> >> On this day, the stroke survivors introduce themselves and then played BINGO.

393.36 -> >> You can load her up there.

395.199 -> >> Come on John.

396.199 -> >> I think it's fun, and I think we'll come back every month for it, because we do enjoy

400.2 -> getting to meet other people and to be able to talk about it.

403.49 -> >> [Inaudible] because I'm so new to this.

408.47 -> >> N-32.

410.68 -> >> Everybody else is a veteran.

414.14 -> >> B-1.

415.389 -> >> Ted may be new to this, but he has a message that he wants everyone to hear.

421.139 -> >> It is so tough.

423.11 -> The hardest thing I have ever done.

426.76 -> Just work hard; don't give up.

431.12 -> >> He's doing great.

432.71 -> He could've died.

433.71 -> I don't forget that every day.

436.04 -> We're very blessed, and I'm thankful that I have him.

441.919 -> >> And Ted is making progress every day.

444.73 -> He wanted to share his story, so he can help others.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d24lCp-MMbM