Mike Musegades'' trip to Barnes-Jewish Hospital was over 7,000 miles, but his recovery took only a couple of weeks.
A 21-year veteran of the U.S. Navy, Lieutenant Commander Musegades was piloting MH60 Sierra Knighthawk helicopters in the Persian Gulf as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, when he awoke one morning with a spot in his left eye.
"I didn''t think much of it," says Musegades. "A lot of the flying I was doing was while I wore night vision goggles, so it didn''t affect my job."
Initially, it was thought he suffered from the eye disorder Drusen or perhaps a calcium deposit, but military doctors in Pensacola decided to check out his heart. It was there they determined Musegades suffered a small stroke due to a heart defect called patent foramen ovale or PFO.
It''s a small opening between the chambers of the heart that should normally close after birth. However, in about 25 percent of patients the hole remains open, leaving a risk that blood clots can travel to the brain, causing a stroke.
A military cardiologist at Scott Air Force Base outside of St. Louis sent Musegades to John Lasala, MD, PhD, director of interventional cardiology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine.
Traditionally, PFO repair is done surgically, however using a device