Canadian teen is left with exposed pulsing BRAIN after brutal attack in Dominican Republic nightclub
A Canadian teenager's trip to the Dominican Republic took a horrific turn after he was brutally beaten at a resort nightclub.
Chase Delorme-Rowan barely has any recollection of the events that transpired during the assault at the Punta Cana hotel, which has left a part of his brain exposed as he continues to recover.
The Edmonton resident and his family traveled to the Caribbean Island to celebrate his 18th birthday.
Delorme-Rowan and his two brothers visited the resort's club the night of January 14 when he was pummeled by a Nova Scotian man who was also staying at the hotel.
The teen was grabbed by the collar, shaken and tossed to the ground head-first, cracking his skull.
'I went out for a smoke, then I got back in and I sat down and it just went black,' Delorme-Rowan told the National Post.
Delorme-Rowan developed a blood clot in his skull which caused his brain to move to the right. To get the clot out, doctors had to remove a part of the skull. The procedure also reduced the brain's swelling and stopped the bleeding.
The teenager's skull was left open for five days and was stitched without the piece that has been removed. The savage assault left him comatose for almost three weeks in the Dominican Republic before he was flown to Edmonton.
Chase Delorme-Rowan, of Edmonton, Canada, traveled with his family to celebrate his 18th birthday in Punta Cana in January, but the trip almost ended in tragedy after he was brutally assaulted by a Canadian man at a club in the resort where they were staying
Edmonton, Canada resident Chase Delorme-Rowan suffered a cracked skull after he was attacked by a man from Nova Scotia at a Punta Cana resort club on January 14. Doctors removed a part of his skull to extract a blood clot and left it uncovered for five days before it as stitched up
Delorme-Rowan awoke in February, but the severe impact of the beating caused his right arm and both legs to move uncontrollably and his left arm was paralyzed.
He was discharged from the hospital in March and had to re-learn how to talk, walk, eat and drink.
His rehabilitation process includes performing exercises with a stretch band to regain his strength and working on his hand-eye coordination by stacking coins.
Something as simple as drinking water has proven to be difficult at times.
'It kept on going into his lungs because he didn't know how to relax the muscle in his throat,' Rowan said.
The teen's birthday celebration turned into a nightmare that required a long recovery process
As part of his rehabilitation process, Chase Delorme-Rowan, had to learn how to talk, walk, eat and drink.
Delorme-Rowan, who lost 40 pounds while comatose, is also required to wear a helmet as his team of doctors await to cover the hole in his skull with plastic or titanium this month.
'If I hit where my skull is missing, I could die,' he said.
The suspect remains jailed in the Dominican Republic, where prosecutors have yet to charge him with murder.
'Every day I wake up and I'm grateful to still be here, because I could have passed away,' Delorme-Rowan said. 'I've started cherishing all the small things. Even just sitting here … I'm happy.'
