Dieter Zander Update

Many of you, like us, have been waiting for news about the procedure to place another stent in Dieter’s artery. I thought we would have all the opinions a week and a half ago, but different doctors have been on vacation or out sick. Just today, we got the final opinion we had requested.

Although the doctors offered differing opinions, we have decided that the benefits of this procedure outweigh the risks, and we’re going ahead. This surgery will not correct anything that has already happened nor repair any damage from the first stroke. It will, though, restore the currently slowed blood flow in Dieter’s brain to his normal levels and protect him from future strokes. We hope Dieter can go in for the procedure in about 2 weeks and not more than 4 weeks from now. He’ll stay in the hospital 24-48 hours.

When we have a date, I’ll post it here.

Dieter continues to work on daily exercise, therapy for his arm and hand, and speech therapy. His right shoulder started hurting, so he’ll be meeting one-on-one with a physical therapist to address the pain and regain full range of motion. The physical therapist will also help with a bit of a limp that has started. We’ve realized that, without the help of a professional, we don’t know how to help Dieter do his exercises correctly, and then problems develop.

Last Sunday, we went back to church. To all of you at BayMarin, it was really good to be with you again.