Making Headway

The other day Elaina had 2 IV's in her scalp, so her nurses decided to dress her up! They found this cute little pink hat. She didn't like it very much, as she's not fond of having things on her head. She kept moving her head from side to side trying to dislodge it, but at least she cooperated long enough for this picture!



The IV's in her scalp didn't last long and putting in a picc line hadn't worked. So on Wednesday they put in an IJ (Intra-Jugular). As you can see, she wasn't too happy about it.
She wasn't the only one that wasn't happy. About an hour after the IJ was in, Cardiology came screaming. This is the area that they needed to have untouched for her Glenn. If she were to get a clot or something damaged the vein.... well, we don't even want to go there. The reason they are doing a Glenn and not another type of repair is due to the fact that she has some very challenging anatomy. She has some enlarged cardiac arteries that they are calling "fistulas". The surgeons are worried that if they diminish or cut off the blood supply to the fistulas, her heart will stop. So, to play it safe they are going to do the Glenn. At least this is the current plan.

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We had so much fun dressing her up the other day that I brought some of her dresses from home. With so much time spent in the hospital, she is going to outgrow them before she gets to wear them, so I figured she can be the best dressed patient in the hospital!


Cardiology was so worried about the IJ placement on Wednesday that they scheduled her sedated echo cardiogram for today. They were concerned enough with the results of the echo that Elaina has been scheduled for a visit to the Cath lab on Friday. They are going to do 2 things. First they are going to do a dye injection to see just exactly how her heart is pumping the blood in and out. Second they are going to try inserting a balloon to increase the size of one of the openings in her heart. According to the echo, the size is currently restricting the blood flow enough that she is unable to fully profuse her body. This could be the reason behind her increased oxygen need and low saturations. Based on the results of the cath, she could be in surgery as early as next week. Wow. I'm a little bit overwhelmed by this dramatic change. The cardiologist that reviewed her echo said that there were enough differences from last weeks unsedated echo to warrant a trip to the Cath lab at this point. I am super scared and nervous for this to happen. At the same time, there is a little bit of relief that we are finally making headway. Her fevers are still a concern, and I'm still waiting for the results of her immunology panel. I'm exhausted and still have lots to do tonight to get ready for my weekend, I'll be staying at the hospital with Elaina once again. Prayer is powerful, please pray for Elaina. She is a fighter and I have faith that she will be able to get through this!

Before I end though, I just have to show you how my 5 year old eats watermelon. He was already filthy from playing in the backyard, so he got dunked in the tub when he was done!!!


He's good for a laugh!!!