It's been almost 48 hours since Morgan's PDA ligation surgery and she is already showing signs of improvement. As expected, she initally had some trouble with her blood pressure and kidney function, but she responded to the medicine they gave her pretty quickly. As of today she is still on a very low dose of dopamine to maintain her urine output, and a couple other medications to keep her comfortable on the oscillator, but that is all.
They had told us they needed to compress one of her lungs during the surgery to access the ductus and today they said the same lung was partially collapsed. However they said it was not uncommon following PDA surgery and since she is already on the oscillator, it wouldn't require anything other than laying her on her left side a little longer than they otherwise would. She would need another x-ray to confirm, but this afternoon the nurses said they could tell that it was already improving. Despite the collapsed lung, they have also been able to wean her down on the oscillator a couple of times to the point that she is on less support than prior to surgery. Right now we're very happy that she seemed to handle the surgery about as well as we could expect, and that she is showing some improvement thanks to the closed PDA.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Successful PDA Surgery!
Other than getting pushed back from 11:30am to 4:00pm, Morgan's surgery to close her PDA seems to have gone as expected. She was still recovering from the sedation when we left the hospital this evening around 8:00. Otherwise she was doing well and had not yet started the back slide that the doctors have repeatedly told us to expect in the first few days following surgery. We're still hopeful that her recovery will be relatively smooth and that they'll be able to begin weaning her from the ventilator soon.
So for now it's more of the waiting game that we've been getting pretty good at playing. They'll be keeping a close eye on her blood pressure and kidney function since those are the most likely of problems to occur after surgery. Thanks again to everyone for all the prayers and support, especially leading up to this surgery.
In other news, at last check Morgan was up to 2 lbs 3 oz. Some of this is due to fluid build-up which should subside some thanks to the closed artery. But it's also obvious that she is growing a little every day. Also, Shelly said she was really active this afternoon prior to surgery and was keeping her eyes open for longer than she had seen before. Of course, she took the opportunity to take some photos.
"What's the deal, I thought I was having surgery today?"
So for now it's more of the waiting game that we've been getting pretty good at playing. They'll be keeping a close eye on her blood pressure and kidney function since those are the most likely of problems to occur after surgery. Thanks again to everyone for all the prayers and support, especially leading up to this surgery.
In other news, at last check Morgan was up to 2 lbs 3 oz. Some of this is due to fluid build-up which should subside some thanks to the closed artery. But it's also obvious that she is growing a little every day. Also, Shelly said she was really active this afternoon prior to surgery and was keeping her eyes open for longer than she had seen before. Of course, she took the opportunity to take some photos.
"What's the deal, I thought I was having surgery today?"
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Big Day Tomorrow
After two relatively quiet weeks the excitement is starting again, whether we're ready or not. Based on the results of Tuesday's echo and a surgery consult today, Morgan is scheduled for PDA ligation surgery Thursday morning at 11:30. The procedure will close the artery that is currently allowing her oxygenated and deoxygenated blood to mix rather than travel through her heart and body properly.
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.
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.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Happy Birthday Morgan!
Well, its been one month since Morgan was born and honestly it seems to have flown by. Hopefully the next few months will do the same and we'll have her home before we know it. Although I'm sure the closer that day gets, the more impatient we will be.
Still nothing significant to report. She should get her echokardiogram today or tomorrow so we'll know more after that. Also they are doing some equipment upgrades in the NICU so she was moved to a new pod yesterday but they said she tolerated it without a problem. And Nana and Papa were impressed with how much she had grown since their last visit a week ago.
Other than that, her feeds are still on hold but mainly as a precaution until they get her PDA resolved. Her blood pressure has been good but they still have her on small dose of dopamine to keep her urine output where it needs to be. She is also still on the oscillator but they did lower her morphine dose today.
Still nothing significant to report. She should get her echokardiogram today or tomorrow so we'll know more after that. Also they are doing some equipment upgrades in the NICU so she was moved to a new pod yesterday but they said she tolerated it without a problem. And Nana and Papa were impressed with how much she had grown since their last visit a week ago.
Other than that, her feeds are still on hold but mainly as a precaution until they get her PDA resolved. Her blood pressure has been good but they still have her on small dose of dopamine to keep her urine output where it needs to be. She is also still on the oscillator but they did lower her morphine dose today.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
No news is good news this week...PDA surgery likely next week.
Morgan has had a pretty quiet week. She seems to be fully recovered from her infection but has not made much progress as far as her ventilation is concerned. She is on dopamine again to help her urinate, morphine to keep her from squirming, and of course the oscillator. Today is her last day of antibiotics and then she will receive another echocardiogram tomorrow. From there they will most likely confirm that she needs surgery to resolve her PDA. From all reports it's a pretty routine procedure as far as preemies are concerned. And in most cases babies tend to have much better progress on the ventilators once they have had a few days to recover from the surgery. John and I are eager for her to have it so that her breathing improves.
She is also gaining weight bit by bit although they temporarily took her off her feedings because she was spitting them up. Her stomach is also big and round but since the x-rays show everything to be okay they said they'll probably start back up tomorrow and see how she does.
Below is a picture of Morgan on her tummy. Next to her is a rattle that my boss gave her.
She is also gaining weight bit by bit although they temporarily took her off her feedings because she was spitting them up. Her stomach is also big and round but since the x-rays show everything to be okay they said they'll probably start back up tomorrow and see how she does.
Below is a picture of Morgan on her tummy. Next to her is a rattle that my boss gave her.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Pink and Princesses
Morgan is doing pretty much the same. She is still having problems with fluid on her lungs and receiving high oxygen levels. But we're grateful that she seems to be stable. They have also increased the amount of milk she is getting and she is tolerating that well.
Morgan received a handmade blanket today from a group called Project Linus. It is so adorable. John's niece Adison is over the top with princesses so I'm sure she'll like it also. The picture doesn't do the blanket justice.
Morgan also has this new "Zaky" in her incubator. It's basically a bean bag that is in the shape of a hand. Since she is squirming so much again even on morphine, they place it around her and partially on her to keep her still so that the oscillator can work better and so she feels more "safe". A neat side note, it was invented by a woman here in Houston who had a preemie. It's not easy to spot in the photo below unless you are looking for it. It is the tan thing covering up her legs.
Morgan received a handmade blanket today from a group called Project Linus. It is so adorable. John's niece Adison is over the top with princesses so I'm sure she'll like it also. The picture doesn't do the blanket justice.
Morgan also has this new "Zaky" in her incubator. It's basically a bean bag that is in the shape of a hand. Since she is squirming so much again even on morphine, they place it around her and partially on her to keep her still so that the oscillator can work better and so she feels more "safe". A neat side note, it was invented by a woman here in Houston who had a preemie. It's not easy to spot in the photo below unless you are looking for it. It is the tan thing covering up her legs.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Feeding Again!
We just got home from visiting Morgan at the NICU. She seems to be recovering well from what was most likely an infection although the culture they took is still negative. They told us it wasn't that unusual for the culture not to show anything despite an actual infection, but they will keep watching it for five days and she will stay on the antibiotics for at least seven days.
Also, the abdominal ultrasound came back completely normal so they have resumed the breast milk feedings she started before she got so sick. She got her third feeding of the day while we were there and so far she is tolerating them without any problems. They were also finally able to weigh her again and she is up to 790 grams or, for those of us with no use for the metric system, about 1 lb 12 oz.
Now that she is doing better we are hoping she begins to make some progress on her oscillator settings. She has been pretty much stuck at her current levels for the last three days and I know Shelly and I would both be thrilled if they are able to start slowly weaning her off of ventilation support again.
Another highlight of tonight's visit was getting to see her open both eyes with a little more frequency than we have before. She is kept somewhat sedated while she is on the oscillator, so mostly it's been fleeting moments of her squinting through a barely-cracked eyelid. However, tonight she was opening both of them pretty wide and leaving them that way for a while.
Also, the abdominal ultrasound came back completely normal so they have resumed the breast milk feedings she started before she got so sick. She got her third feeding of the day while we were there and so far she is tolerating them without any problems. They were also finally able to weigh her again and she is up to 790 grams or, for those of us with no use for the metric system, about 1 lb 12 oz.
Now that she is doing better we are hoping she begins to make some progress on her oscillator settings. She has been pretty much stuck at her current levels for the last three days and I know Shelly and I would both be thrilled if they are able to start slowly weaning her off of ventilation support again.
Another highlight of tonight's visit was getting to see her open both eyes with a little more frequency than we have before. She is kept somewhat sedated while she is on the oscillator, so mostly it's been fleeting moments of her squinting through a barely-cracked eyelid. However, tonight she was opening both of them pretty wide and leaving them that way for a while.
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