This couldn’t really be put together with the awesomeness that was the other post for today. This one is the medical update. Brendan had some issues last night with not having adequate urine output. The IV tower had to come back in because they put him back on the Milrinone to help him with his pressures and then he was able to urinate properly.

The cardiologist had mentioned earlier that another procedure might be necessary, and it looks like it will be now. Brendan will get another echocardiogram in the morning and then the team will make the decision as to whether or not to proceed with it.
Part of Brendan’s heart defect is an Atrial Septal Defect, a hole in the septum (wall) between the left and right atrium of his heart. In a normal heart, this hole would create quite a problem and would be surgically repaired. In Brendan’s heart, this hole is necessary for the proper flow of blood and balance of pressure. In Brendan’s case, this hole is not as big as they would like it to be so the atrium that receives blood back from the lungs has a higher pressure than the other, and that can cause the blood flow from the lungs to back up while the blue blood from the body flows more easily in to his single ventricle.
The physical result is that Brendan can be nice and stable and his numbers can look very good until he gets agitated. In a state of stress or exertion when his heart works harder, the blood moves more slowly from the lungs and the oxygen saturation in his system drops.

They will do the procedure called an Atrial Septostomy, where using a heart catheter they will inflate a balloon and stretch/tear the opening between the two atriums to allow better flow and equal pressures. The main ICU doctor feels that the benefits from this procedure will far outweigh the risks. Where this is not an open surgery, recovery should be quicker. When Brendan has his Glenn procedure, they will be opening this further anyway. So this is just an early step they can take to improve his chances to grow heavier and stronger in preparation for the real open heart surgery.
He just is not ready for the full operation, so this will help him along while he grows.

I am hoping that we will know tomorrow when and if they will be doing this! In the meantime, Brendan is doing well and we are really looking forward to having more brother-time!