Emerson Brother Rallies Community Around Comatose Sister

EMERSON, N.J. — More than $5,000 had been raised as of Saturday evening on a GoFundMe for an Emerson teen battling a rare disease.

Emerson's Jessica Livingstone, 16, was put in a medically-induced coma after being diagnosed with a rare disease.
Photo Credit: *GoFundMe*

Cecilia Levine

01/28/2017 6:12 p.m.

Jessica Livingstone, 16, was diagnosed with Moyamoya after she had a stroke earlier this month, according to the the GoFundMe page, launched by her older brother, Daniel, a Dumont native.

Moyamoya shrinks the main blood vessels going to her brain, making it difficult for her brain to receive blood.

Shortly after her stroke, the area of the brain affected swelled and Jessica had to be put in a medically-induced coma using a ventilator to help her breathe.

Once the teen regains full consciousness and the swelling goes dow, she'll need physical therapy and two neurosurgeries, the GoFundMe says.

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