16:15 -- Just a quick post to update everyone on Max' day. First, his bilirubin is down to 13.7 which Doctor R. feels is a true number; it's progress! His platelets are down from yesterday to the 35K range, but we're still far from the transfusion threshold of 20K. I asked Dr. R. if his transfusion rate would impede his ability to be discharged from the hospital and he said no, and that Max would probably continue to need platelets for a "looooong time." I didn't even bother asking what "loooooong" meant.
Max had a sleepy day, unlike yesterday when he seemed to be very awake and aware. The good news from today is that the PICC line is going away, maybe even by the time of this post. No more TPN, Nurse S. said, and she closed off the line to allow it to clot before Nurse A. attempted to remove the line. Blood loss -- the ever-present issue....
Max' blood gas from 09:00 came back "good" again, so more ventilator tweaking. Dr. R. said he's doing really well and hopefully if Max continues with his progress that he'll be back on CPAP by the end of next week. Not a moment too soon, really, as Max seems to be totally annoyed with the intubation tube down his throat. I did get to hold him again, but he spent the first 10 minutes or so silently screaming and swatting at his tube. Nurse S. called him a "hot box" because he generates so much heat. We were both uncomfortable so after an hour I conceded defeat and put him back to bed so he (and I) could cool off. I'm sure there's more news to report so I'll check my notes later and post anything I may have forgotten.
Another important happening: Max is now able to wear t-shirts! He looks so cute in his hospital-issued white tee. We've gotten all the baby clothes down from the attic and are looking forward to dressing him in his sister's non-gender specific clothing....
No comments:
Post a Comment