The actual surgery only takes about 20 minutes and will be done bedside right in the NICU. During the surgery she will either be placed back on the regular ventilator or vented manually with a breathing bag, and afterwards she will go back on the oscillator.
Apparently it’s a pretty routine procedure that is usually harder on the parents than the baby. However, along with the risks you would expect with any type of surgery, we have also been told to expect her to have a rough couple of days following the surgery. It was explained to us that her body has adapted to the open ductus and will need time to adjust to the change in blood flow that results after closing it. Most of the time this means the baby gets pretty sick for the first 72 hours or so after surgery. The good news being that she should eventually adapt again and begin to recover, not only from the surgery, but also from the problems she is currently having with her vent support and fluid on her lungs.
Overall, I think we’re both ready for her to have this surgery since it is necessary for her to eventually come off of ventilation and oxygen support completely. Also we’re both looking forward to once again being able to hold her, seeing her activity increase sans the sedation required for the oscillator, starting her feeds again, and everything else that comes with her continued progress.
We really enjoyed our time with her this evening, as she seems to be getting more comfortable with us placing our hand on top of her and has taken to grabbing our thumb when we do so. Shelly also got a big kick out of watching her yawn since she had never seen her do so before.
Nana sends all her love and prayers Morgan. We will see you soon.
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