{"id":282,"date":"2011-11-09T22:20:44","date_gmt":"2011-11-10T05:20:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/projectbat.com\/minibat\/?p=282"},"modified":"2011-11-09T22:43:25","modified_gmt":"2011-11-10T05:43:25","slug":"week-3-day-2-unexpected-surgery-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/projectbat.com\/minibat\/2011\/11\/09\/week-3-day-2-unexpected-surgery-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Week 3 – Day 2 – Unexpected Surgery Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

The day started off like they normally do these days. Trying to wake up, hustling to try to get things done, heading off for our daily visits.
\nWe try to make it to see Trevor by 12:30PM so we don’t miss his awake time at 1PM. Today we arrived just in time for him to be finishing his bottle and falling back to sleep. We did both sit and hold him for a while but I missed the chance to breastfeed again. The nurse informed us that he would be moving tonight to the nursery annex downstairs on the first floor. That is great news, the annex is the gateway to going home. They send only strong babies there to finish their “to do list” before they are discharged. The nurse did call later in the evening to let us know that the move did happen, we can’t wait to see him there tomorrow.<\/p>\n

While I was in the pumping room, Bill got a call from the other hospital with notice that Brendan had taken a turn for the worse. The boys’ primary doctor was there to explain it to us too. We had been calling in the night to check on his xrays and they had all been fine – no change. His labwork all looked good, his stats on the monitors were the same – on paper, he was doing well.
\nBut around noon today, he belly started to swell up quickly and he developed red banding which can be a very bad sign of infection or severe irritation. They were going to have to take him for exploratory surgery to find out what was going on.
\nThey ordered an ultrasound to look for the possibility of clotting in the abdominal arteries, but that all came up clear.<\/p>\n

They finally transported him for surgery around 3:45PM, we did all the paperwork and they settled us in the waiting area by 4:15PM. Finally just after 6PM, the surgeon came out with the news. The NEC was mostly concentrated in his appendix. This could be seen as a good thing because the appendix is the least important part of the system and won’t be missed when removed. Unfortunately, it had ruptured with a small hole and all of the belly swelling and inflammation was due to stool and digestive material leaking in to his abdomen. They removed the appendix and cleaned everything out. There were some additional signs of NEC in his colon (air trapped in the walls causing some inflammation) but they believed that it was not advanced and could heal. They performed a temporary ileostomy to allow this area to rest and heal. <\/p>\n

Link to description of Ileostomy<\/a><\/p>\n

They will keep a careful eye on him now and in a few weeks, if there is no more sign of the NEC, they will reverse the ileostomy. We will have to talk to the cardiology team to find out how this affects his schedule for heart repair procedures. In the meantime, we have come home to try to get some rest. Brendan is well sedated and will be kept stable and comfortable while he recovers. We’ll be calling in to check on him frequently.<\/p>\n

Pictures<\/strong><\/p>\n

The pictures of Brendan are difficult to look at, but I thought it was still important to document the things he is going through. We all can look back on it with him later and appreciate how strong he is because of it.
\nI have linked them so you can look at them if you choose.<\/p>\n

Picture link: Brendan just prior to surgery<\/a><\/p>\n

Brendan getting his ultrasound
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Another journey, a much shorter walk this time to the OR
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Picture link: Brendan just back from surgery<\/a> – He is very pale and heavily sedated in this picture. It is so painful to see him like this. They drew so much blood for labwork that they are having to give him some back. <\/p>\n

Trevor’s pictures will always make me smile. I really wish that the good fortune shining down on Trevor would make it’s way over to his brother too.<\/p>\n

Trevor teaches his pose of meditation
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His kung fu fighting is fast as lightning
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**Did you notice his feeding tube is now on the other side? That is because he pulled the other one out! <\/p>\n

Now Trevor demonstrates the ferocious kick that he used to deliver to my ribs. It is so powerful, it gives him hiccups.
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