Editor's Note: In 2009, UMMC received an update from Ian himself on life after an AVM.
After some intensive physical therapy courses and a brief re-introduction to the high school class system via Kennedy Krieger, I returned to my junior year at Calvert Hall. Everyone, students and faculty alike, was amazingly supportive and I had no trouble graduating. From there I attended CCBC Essex for two years and transferred into Towson University.
I graduated with a bachelors of science in English and held odd clerical positions in the offices of two driving schools, and am presently hunting about for further employment. I still aspire to be a professional writer, and am well under way on my first manuscript. I still experience migranes, and stress headaches, but thankfully I've learned ways to better handle, and even avoid, them all together.
In retrospect, I believe that the AVM has actually helped me further develop as a person. It's given me a better insight into the feelings of others in similar situations, my exposure to those with disabilities throughout my time at Kennedy Krieger has raised my comfort levels around them and even allows me to empathize with people better in general. Where I never really stopped for breaks or paid attention to lesser details in daily life, now that I'm made to, the overall quality of my life has vastly improved.
Imagine going to school one day, and ending up in intensive care for weeks afterwards. That's what happened to one local teen with a disorder that put his life in jeopardy.
Ian Kotmair, 18, doesn't remember the 77 days he spent fighting for his life. He says it all began last year while he was in school.
"Sitting with friends, felt a sharp pain in the back of head, said 'Excuse me, guys. I'm stopping by the nurse for some medication,'" said Ian.
But it was no ordinary headache. Ian became unconscious, was rushed to the hospital, and ended up at the University of Maryland Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.
His parents prepared for the worst. Doctors discovered Ian had arterio venous malformation -- AVM. It is an abnormal collection of blood vessels that ruptured in his brain.
"It took up space in the back of his brain, caused brain swelling and it was the increase in pressure in the brain that caused him to pass out," says pediatrician Dr. Alice Ackerman.
Ackerman says Ian's case is unusual because many people can live with AVM and never know it. She says AVM can cause sudden severe headaches, seizures, and in extreme cases like Ian's, bleeding.
Ian had several setbacks before he got better, but Ackerman calls his recovery a miracle. Ian now uses a cane instead of a wheelchair, and he's awaiting surgery to take care of his double vision.
Ian's mother kept a journal during his illness -- something Ian says he'll read eventually, but for now he's looking ahead. "I can recover from this. I'm gonna recover from this," says Ian.
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