27-year-old Boston runner suffers stroke; doctors find patent foramen ovale
A 27-year-old Boston man, Patrick Mascoli, suffered a stroke in July 2024 while changing after a run and later underwent a catheter procedure to close a patent foramen ovale (PFO), his doctors and Fox News Digital said.
According to Fox News Digital, Mascoli — an engineer who was running about 40 miles per week — felt sudden, severe head pain and visual disturbance after a 10-mile run and gym session. He collapsed in a locker room and was taken to Boston Medical Center, where clinicians identified a stroke on CT and confirmed it with MRI.
First responders initially treated Mascoli for possible dehydration and hospital clinicians treated suspected vertigo before imaging showed a stroke, Fox News Digital reported. Mascoli told Fox News Digital he could not control his legs, vomited and had blurred vision during the episode.
Hospital teams performed extensive blood testing for clotting disorders without clear answers. A bubble echocardiogram revealed a patent foramen ovale — an opening between the heart’s upper chambers that sometimes persists after birth — which Mascoli’s doctors considered the likely route for a clot to reach his brain, Fox News Digital reported. Dr. Dheeraj Khurana, chief of cardiology at Episcopal Health Services in New York, told Fox News Digital that he did not treat Mascoli and that in rare cases a clot can pass through a PFO to cause a stroke.
About a month after the stroke, Mascoli had a catheter procedure to close the opening using an Abbott device, described in the report as a mesh, double-sided umbrella. He spent several days in the hospital and used a walker as he relearned to walk; the report says he still has lingering fine-motor difficulties.
Fox News Digital reported that Mascoli returned to running with the support of family and therapy and that in October 2026 he completed the Chicago Marathon as part of Team Abbott.
The article cites clinicians saying factors that may raise stroke risk in younger adults include high blood pressure, smoking, unhealthy cholesterol, clotting disorders, certain heart conditions and artery tears. Khurana told Fox News Digital that younger stroke patients may experience dizziness, altered mental status, vomiting and headaches that can be mistaken for exhaustion, and that visual disturbances, speech problems, weakness, lethargy or seizures are other possible symptoms.
Dr. Sean Levchuck, chair of pediatric cardiology at St. Francis Hospital & Heart Center in New York, told Fox News Digital that young, active adults should stay active, replace fluids after strenuous activity and avoid tobacco. The report also cites the American Stroke Association in advising anyone with sudden loss of balance, vision changes, face drooping, arm weakness or difficulty speaking to call 911 immediately, regardless of age or fitness level.
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