On October 30, 2009, I had a severe Pain in my right temple area. My physician was on the east coast for a conference at the time, so I was referred to another doctor who diagnosed my condition as Cerebral Arteritis. I was then referred to a Rheumatologists, thinking that my immune system was being attacked.

My rheumatologist immediately scheduled a CT head scan. The scan revealed something peculiar. He told me that I was missing one of four carotid arteries,which are responsible for sending blood and oxygen to the brain. He then scheduled an MRI to check my head and ear canal. After all the tests, I was prescribed Prednisone, which would decrease the inflammation. But my doctor was puzzled and had to refer to a thick, black medical book of case studies. It was as if he didn’t know what to do next.

So, I was referred to a neurologist. He reviewed the previous CT head scan and another thorough MRI was done in my carotid artery area. The test results showed that I was born without a carotid artery.The blood route to my brain remains a mystery. The neurologist just told me, “Sometimes doctors don’t know everything,”
He said that all he could do was to schedule CT head scans semi-annually to check the arteries.

Meanwhile, he scheduled an appointment for me to see an ophthalmologist. My eye exam revealed that I had glaucoma,which is an increased pressure in the optic nerve of the eye. At the time, the pressure was sixteen. As a result, I was prescribed eye drops to relieve the pressure.

Next, I went to see a Cardiologist. But first I had to go to Queen’s Hospital to get an ultrasound of my heart. I also had to wear a heart monitor for twenty-four hours to check for any irregularities. The cardiologist said that I may need a pacemaker because I was feeling nauseated and fatigued.

During my twenty-four monitoring, my heart had stopped for a moment. It was determined that my heart had briefly stopped due to a reaction from the eye drops that I was taking for my glaucoma. More test were done on the treadmill because I had chest pain and stomach irritation.

Before my visits to Dr. Yoza’s, I wasn’t feeling well-even with all the medications that were prescribed to help make me feel better. At times, I even felt nauseated and fatigued. I felt frustrated that my health wasn’t improving and I was beginning to lose hope of ever getting better.

When I went walking, it was hard to breathe. It felt like I was in no condition to walk. This was very awkward for me because I was an active jogger and swimmer. I used to jog twenty-four miles a week and swim afterwards. Now I was having trouble walking ! Needless to say, my doctors told me that I needed to quit jogging.

After two months of seeing Dr. Yoza, I feel 95% better. The awkward feeling I had have diminished considerably and the nausea has gone away. I am now able to walk with little discomfort.

During my last visit to the ophthalmologist, my eye pressure was eleven, with twelve being the norm. Before, it was sixteen! Dr. Yoza’s treatment have helped me a lot.

Thank you Dr Yoza & Staff

Gerald Nakamura