Wednesday was Emma's 2 month checkup at the Pediatrician & as all mothers know the first thing they do is get the child's weight. Emma's weight was 9 lb 14 oz, which didn't seem too bad to me but maybe a little low. So her doctor comes in the room & starts asks me how Emma was progressing developmentally & I told her fine. She smiles, coos, all the things she askes me Emma was right on track with, except for her weight. She said Emma had only gained 1 ounce in the last 12 days & her rate of weight gain was too low. She continued her exam & went to discuss the possibility of putting Emma in the hospital, I was shocked. She went & called Emma's Cardiologist & he agreed. So Emma & I went home packed our bags, waited on Chris to get home & we all headed to the hospital.
We got to the hospital around 4pm & they took some blood from her to run labs almost right after we got there. They also scheduled a swallow test, a echo of her heart, a consult with a nutritionist & a possible CT scan. Her swallow test came back fairly normal with small signs of reflux but nothing out of the ordinary & the nutritionist put her on a higher calorie diet to hopefully start increasing her weight. Then she had an echo of her heart done, which she has had several of those already. Her cardiologist recommended they put her on, Lasix to remove any fluid that may be around her heart or lungs due to the VSD (holes in her heart). He said we would see an immediate difference if it was working. By the next day her heart rate & breathing had gotten slower & gained 2 ounces.
We came home on Saturday afternoon & it appears that her heart & lungs were working too hard & burning off too many calories. She will stay on the Lasix + the higher calorie diet for now but she will probably have to have a heart cathe done soon to get a better look at what is exactly going on. There was mention of possible surgery to repair the VSD in the future but her cardiologist only want to do surgery if absolutely neccessary. Emma has a weight check tomorrow & a follow up with her cardiologist on Thursday.
We got to the hospital around 4pm & they took some blood from her to run labs almost right after we got there. They also scheduled a swallow test, a echo of her heart, a consult with a nutritionist & a possible CT scan. Her swallow test came back fairly normal with small signs of reflux but nothing out of the ordinary & the nutritionist put her on a higher calorie diet to hopefully start increasing her weight. Then she had an echo of her heart done, which she has had several of those already. Her cardiologist recommended they put her on, Lasix to remove any fluid that may be around her heart or lungs due to the VSD (holes in her heart). He said we would see an immediate difference if it was working. By the next day her heart rate & breathing had gotten slower & gained 2 ounces.
We came home on Saturday afternoon & it appears that her heart & lungs were working too hard & burning off too many calories. She will stay on the Lasix + the higher calorie diet for now but she will probably have to have a heart cathe done soon to get a better look at what is exactly going on. There was mention of possible surgery to repair the VSD in the future but her cardiologist only want to do surgery if absolutely neccessary. Emma has a weight check tomorrow & a follow up with her cardiologist on Thursday.
4 comments:
Bless all your hearts---I am so sorry things have been so crazy the last little while. So glad that they can pinpoint a path to take with her and hopefully Emma will gain more and more. She is a beautiful little girl and I cannot imagine the worry you and Chris have experienced. We will keep you all in our prayers. Technology is GREAT today---I know Emma will get the best care and do just fine! Love you all!!!
I have been keeping Mom updated on her progress. I'm so glad you called me to let me know! I'll talk to you on Tuesday...
Oh my Emma, you've been working hard!
Sure glad for modern medicine when we need it. You guys take care of yourselves over there. I'm thinking of you.
I am so sorry to hear that. I was born with a VSD and had heart surgery at 7 months old. I will certainly say a prayer for your little one.
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