In September 2023, a 8-year-old was rushed to the emergency room after suffering a stroke when a blood vessel ruptured. John Michael Pasquale had a small chance to survive and if the surgeries, angiograms, MRIs and CT scans were successful, he may never be able to walk or speak again. During the operations, Pasquale suffered his second stroke. The young boy was placed on a ventilator, heavily sedated, and unresponsive. He was 35 pounds.
At the time of the incident, Pasquale was playing video games before complaining about a bad headache. After taken to the emergency room, the CAT scan showed his brain bleeding. His ruptured Arteriovenous Malformation, or AVM, had formed 4 clusters that turned into a blood clot within the vessels. He had to get painful injections twice a day to get rid of the clot and to prevent it from recurring. Pasquale had a trach and G-tube in his airway. Both his mom and dad were with him the entire time taking sabbaticals from work to be there full time.
After 17 months, February 24th was a very special day. Countless days, nights, holidays missed and multiple days of rehab, Pasquale returned to school. Hundreds of schoolmates in Staten Island lined in the hallways all wearing green in support of Pasquale. Many were holding handmade signs and wearing t-shirts that said "John Michael Strong". His mother says there are still a lot of obstacles to overcome but they're seeing progress every day. The next challenge is to gain the strength a normal 9-year-old has but returning to school is a big step.
Source: Silive