Friday, November 28, 2008
Riding the Roller Coaster
Yesterday was a good day. Cate had 2 good poopies and her intestines started to look a lot better. Her stomach went down a lot. Her blood work was coming back good, so we thought everything was getting better. We had just left the hospital for the day, and we got a phone call from the hospital saying that Cate's white blood cell count was low. They needed our permission to do a spinal tap on her so that they could rule out an infection in her brain. At that point our day went from good to not good. An infection in her brain?! The nurse practitioner called around 11pm to tell us that the gram stain/culture looked encouraging so far (they have to wait 72 hours to know for sure). Today the dr told me that her white blood cell count is still low and that he believes that she for sure has an infection, most likely in her intestines. He is happy that the dr and nurse practitioner stopped her feeds and started the antibiotic the other night. He believes that the infection was brewing and they did what needed to be done just in time. They will continue the antibiotic and no feeds for the next 7-10 days. She will remain on iv fluids. He said her vent settings/blood gas are so good that they may attempt to take her off the ventilator either late tonight or early tomorrow morning. Say some prayers that this happens and that it goes well. Last time we were told that it didn't happen. By the way, Cate is now at 2 lb. 6 oz. and is 4 weeks old!!
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2 comments:
I have been checking in on you guys, as it brings back so many memories for us. The waiting with the NEC is the worst part. It is difficult to sit by and watch as your little one is struggling. But once again, she WILL get through this and WILL get better soon. Out little Eli had been off the vent for a week when they thought he had NEC. I remember being pretty devastated when he had to go back on. The one thing the nurses told me that made me feel so much better was that he was on the vent because he needs all the energy that he is using to breathe to go toward fighting off the infection. It is not because his lungs are not working. The vent is just there to get him through the infection. Just remember that if your little girl is close to coming off the vent when she is working so hard to clear that infection, and is that close even when her tummy is enlarged (which makes it much harder to breathe), that she can breathe on her own and will show you that when she is feeling better. I hope that gives you some comfort. She just needs some time to rest and get better. In a week, things will be completely different and you will be back on the road to getting her home. I will continue to pray for healing for Cate and peace for her wonderful parents.
Blessings,
the Yoders
PRAYING hard for Cate, and the rollercoaster ride you two are on as well. xoxoxo
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