A new direction

It’s been a busy few days.

So the doctor I talked to the other day, the one I asked if there was something we were missing, something we’re not considering….he must have thought about it more. When I left Sam that morning, he was satting in the 90s at anywhere from 50-65% oxygen.

When I came back several hours later, he was satting in the 90s at 25% oxygen. What?! I questioned the nurse, but her explanation didn’t really make sense to me….so we waited till the next morning to speak to the doctor again.

He evidently called the cardiologist on duty (one we’ve never met) and they started talking. Sam’s doctor wondered if since they can’t treat his PVS, should they focus on the pulmonary hypertension instead? He theorized that by keeping his pressure and oxygen high, things were being made worse, that no matter how much pressure they pushed through his obstructed veins, no more blood/oxygen was going to get through. If anything, the increased pressure makes the hypertension worse. The cardiologist agreed.

So now they’re treating Sam in a completely different way, the way they were before the PVS discovery. The hope is to get him back stable enough for belly surgery. And with the lower oxygen/pressure, his lungs should clear up in a couple days and make it easier for him to breathe.

Sam is also LOVING his breastmilk mouthcare. Every nurse always acts shocked that he “tolerates it”, that he “vigorously sucks” — of course he loves it.