Yesterday Emma went for her 6 month post-op cardio check-up & Dr. O thought she looked great. He didn't even see any reason to do a echo or EKG. He didn't hear anything that concerned him when he listened to her & thought her murmur sounded really quiet.
He has now moved Emma's check-up to annually, YAY. He said normally with a child who has a VSD repair he will see them 6 months post-op, then 1 year & then every 2-3 years, but he wants to keep an eye on our Emma. Since she did have 3 surgeries & one of them included a PA band, he wants to make sure no scar tissue forms around the artery which would restrict the flow of blood. He also wants to test her heart rhythms with a holter monitor when she gets older which will be several years from now.
She did really great in the office with no crying, only a little fussing at first & constantly saying bye, bye to the staff which is her way of saying she is ready to go. I think this was the first time anyone has ever listened to her heart since her first surgery where she didn't cry. Could we be turning the corner of learning to not be scared at the doctor? Time will tell...
I almost forgot to mention that Emma weighs 22 lbs now, grow little Emma grow.