Britain's Youngest Stroke Victim Has Symptoms Diagnosed By Dad Thanks To TV Advert

A Dad has been hailed as a hero after knowledge he picked up from a TV advert potentially saved the life of his son, who became the youngest person ever to have a stroke in Britain.

39 year old Phil Kerman found one of his sons, 19 month old Ronnie lying unresponsive in his cot.

Ronnie had suffered a stroke as a result of cysts and tumours on his brain. Doctors are now fighting to drain the cysts to save Ronnie's life and return him safely back to his Dad, his mum - Louise - and his twin brother, Robert.

He has unfortunately lost some of his sight in the incident, but doctors are looking now to remove part of the tumour and he will undergo chemotherapy to try to shrink it.

SWNS

Had Phil not acted when he did though, Ronnie would almost certainly have died.

Phil, who lives in Hull, said:

"I went into his room and he wasn't stood up in his crib like he normally is.

"He was laid down and I lifted one arm up and then his leg and they both had gone floppy.

"I laid him down to crawl because he can't walk yet and he couldn't crawl.

"I immediately thought he'd had a stroke and remembered one of those TV adverts and I told my wife Louise to phone an ambulance."

He was rushed to Hull Royal Infirmary before being moved to Leeds LGI Hospital where it was confirmed that he had suffered a stroke as a result of Neurofibromatosis, which is a genetic illness that caused tumours to form.

SWNS

Phil continued:

"We are just praying that Ronnie can recover from this, his brother Robert is worried and is not old enough to know what is going on.

"We've been at Leeds hospital now for over a week and we are all anxious to know what is next.

"It has come as a shock because there was no difference in his personality, he cried a bit more than his brother, but we thought it was because he was teething.

"I feel heartbroken and I keep blaming myself wondering if there was anything else I could do.

"Luckily I spotted the stroke symptoms straight away, and even though strokes are more common in adults - parents should know the symptoms."

StoryTrender

The doctors are performing the operation to remove part of the tumour on February 19^th - here's hoping it turns out well.

Topics: Viral, Baby, UK News, Family, Interesting, Medical

Edward Watkinson

Ed Watkinson is a content strategist and editor at LADbible Group. Ed works across both marketing and editorial and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8, Extinct and Trash Isle campaigns.

@edwatki