Gabriel Silva and his dog Axel.Photo:Amanda Tanner
Amanda Tanner
A family dog is being praised for alerting parents that their teenager was suffering a medical emergency.
As Daines went to open the door to let Axel outside, the dog went in the opposite direction, sitting in front of the bedroom door of Amanda’s 17-year-old son Gabriel Silva and refusing to move.
Because of Axel’s persistence, Daines went into the bedroom where he found his stepson slurring his words and unable to move the right side of his body. Gabriel was suffering from a stroke.
“Axel has always been very intuitive. He can tell when something is wrong – like if we are feeling down or stressed – and he does his best to fix the problem,” Gabriel tells PEOPLE. “That morning he must have sensed I needed help so he woke up someone who could help.”
Gabriel Silva.Amanda Tanner
Amanda and Daines rushed Gabriel to the emergency room, where the high school senior was then transferred toMemorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Centerfor specialized care fromDr. Sabih Effendi, a neurosurgeon and the hospital’s stroke medical director.
When Gabriel was first seen, he had completely lost the ability to speak and the right side of his body was significantly weak. Effendi performed a cerebral angiogram and discovered that Gabriel had an artery dissection, a tear along the inside lining of an artery, which caused an ischemic stroke.
The teen was given blood thinners to quickly restore blood flow to his brain. Doctors said that if he hadn’t received medical attention when he did, his symptoms would have become permanent and Gabriel would’ve been “unable to be functional in life.”
Gabriel Silva and his dog Axel.1-year-old border collie Axel.Gabriel Silva and his dog Axel.PHOTO:Amanda Tanner1-year-old border collie Axel.PHOTO:Amanda Tanner
Gabriel Silva and his dog Axel.1-year-old border collie Axel.
Gabriel Silva and his dog Axel.
1-year-old border collie Axel.
Gabriel Silva and his dog Axel.PHOTO:Amanda Tanner1-year-old border collie Axel.PHOTO:Amanda Tanner
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“Millions of neurons are lost each minute that passes during an ischemic stroke, ultimately impacting speech and movement and could even result in death,” he tells PEOPLE. “Had the family dog not alerted Gabriel’s parents, and had Gabriel’s parents not identified his symptoms as stroke symptoms, the time to treatment could have been severely delayed resulting in a much different outcome for Gabriel.”
“Instead, Gabriel is walking, talking and looking forward to finishing his senior year of high school,” Effendi adds.
Gabriel Silva in physical therapy after his stroke.Amanda Tanner
Gabriel spent a week in the hospital under close supervision before he was transferred toTIRR Memorial Hermann. While there, he underwent intense physical, occupational, and speech therapy to restore some of the functions that were lost due to the stroke.
Today, the teen is making progress in outpatient therapy, hoping to return to school and soccer in the coming weeks. “I feel like I was before,” Gabriel toldToday.
“He’s now tasked with following Gabriel everywhere,” she said. “He’s now sleeping with Gabriel more, and Gabriel’s doors are open so he can go in and out. He’s always been very sensitive to everything and everybody’s emotions at home.”
source: people.com
