Twins Kathryn and Kimberly Tucker, 26, BOTH suffer strokes just a few months apart
A set of 26-year-old twins have stunned doctors by both suffering strokes just months apart from each other.
Kathryn Tucker, who lives in Tempe, Arizona, felt a sharp pain on the back of her head as she got into bed last July - just nine months before her non-identical twin, Kimberley, felt the same pain.
Both women also suffered a loss of vision and numbness down their body, but for Kathryn, the pain occurred on the right side, while for Kimberley, it occurred on the left.
Medical staff said that for both of the women - who are frateal twins - to suffer a stroke at such a young age is 'like lightning striking twice', especially as they had no family history of the condition.
It is a common misconception only the elderly suffer strokes; in fact, one third of sufferers are under 65 and people younger than 45, the stroke risk has jumped 14 to 20 per cent, experts said.
While Kathryn and Kimberley are both active women, they increased their risk by smoking and taking the contraceptive pill. They had both previously suffered migraines and Kathryn also had a small, previously undetected hole in her heart.
Despite the prevalence of strokes among young people, doctors did not at first diagnose Kathryn correctly, ABC News reported.
When she suffered the pain in her head, loss of vision and numbness, her brother rushed her to hospital, where doctors believed she was just suffering a migraine and sent her home.
'I was absolutely terrified,' she told ABC. 'I slept for three days straight. Then, when I woke up, my vision was horrible. Everything was distorted and one-dimensional. I could barely get around.'
She was sent to an urgent care facility, where she leaed she had had a stroke. Kimberly left school in Tuscon to take care of Kathryn - but nine months later, their roles reversed.
After running in a 5k race, Kimberly retued home feeling thirsty and tired. But when she awoke, she felt a sharp pain at the back of her head and was suffering poor vision and jumbled thoughts.
Yet because of her sister's experience, she knew she was having a stroke - although medical staff initially disagreed.
'The EMTs told me that the chance of both me and my sister having a stroke this young was that of being struck by lightning twice,' she said.
Dr. Joni Clark, a vascular neurologist at Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, told ABC that it was indeed very rare for the two sisters, who do not share DNA, to suffer strokes at a young age.
'Honestly, it's rare for us to actually evaluate two sisters who've had strokes within months of each other,' she said. 'If they had a family history, it would not be a surprise. It's quite uncommon.'
She added that most of the cases among young people are spontaneous, and can be brought on my obesity and the diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol that is associated with it.
The twins said they have both stopped smoking and taking the pill. They have undergone occupational and speech therapy, but their vision is still affected and they cannot drive.
'We think we are invincible until we are not,' Kimberly said. 'This taught us a huge lesson that we are not guaranteed great health and we need to take care of our bodies.'
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