So first thing's first, overall the procedure was a success! Landen went in around 4:30 and emerged from the procedure around 7:30. The process took a bit longer than anticipated, but we are so impressed with the team doing the work. While in the catheter lab they placed a coil in the PDA to help close it official which was something we didn't think would be possible by catheter. They also were able to open the ASD to a level that SHOULD maintain an appropriate level of pressure in the left atrium, while not increasing the blood flow to the heart. If you want to know more about how they do the balloon procedure, check out this link:
For those of you who watched that video...yes, that is exactly what they do. It doesn't sound that scientific but it works! With that all being said, it was a very long day, and Landen was a trooper through the entire procedure. Because his situation is a bit more complex than we anticipated (you cannot know everything until you are in there), he will not be pulled from intubation or sedatives until tomorrow AM. He did actually wake up to the nurses surprise about an hour ago and was given some morphine for the pain, but it shows us all that he is a fighter! His respiration rate is the best they have ever been and the nurse believes this is a good sign even though he is technically on a respirator (but breathing on his own) and sedated.
What happens in the next 24 hours is up for debate. There seams to be two schools of thought here from the teams. One side feels that his blood flow to the lungs is likely to increase as expected and this could be more harmful than good. This camp believes that waiting a couple days would not be good and would prefer if that is the case to open his chest sometime tomorrow to put a band on his pulmonary artery. The other side believes that his naturally restricted artery along with the minimized flow from the ASD (they didn't open it wide open but instead slowly increased its size to balance pressure) could create a balance that is ideal with no further procedure for several months!
As you can see there are two pretty big extremes here, but the good news is that your prayers are working! Landen is a rock star and continues to push hard on his own, and we all are doing what we can to help him :) My specific prayer request is this. We hope that his balance is perfect as he is right now. That his breathing tube can be pulled and he can start the process of recovery so we can go home with him. This does NOT mean that his story ends, but it does mean that he would be stable enough to grow and develop just like any other newborn baby would and when the time is right we would revisit the next steps. We will talk more about the details of those next two phases later, but for now please pray that he recovers through the night and that he is balanced and stable as he is now without having to do another (slightly more invasive) procedure to correct the increased blood flow.
Ashley will be staying the night up here with Landen and I, so PLEASE pray that she gets the rest she needs while she is here, and that she feels comfortable enough to get a nights rest in her own bed while she recovers tomorrow night. I want her here so she can be with her son....but I need my wife to be well if we are going to do this together ;)
Until tomorrow!
Enjoying the journey,
George, Ashley, Maddie, Lyla and Landen :)
For those of you who watched that video...yes, that is exactly what they do. It doesn't sound that scientific but it works! With that all being said, it was a very long day, and Landen was a trooper through the entire procedure. Because his situation is a bit more complex than we anticipated (you cannot know everything until you are in there), he will not be pulled from intubation or sedatives until tomorrow AM. He did actually wake up to the nurses surprise about an hour ago and was given some morphine for the pain, but it shows us all that he is a fighter! His respiration rate is the best they have ever been and the nurse believes this is a good sign even though he is technically on a respirator (but breathing on his own) and sedated.
What happens in the next 24 hours is up for debate. There seams to be two schools of thought here from the teams. One side feels that his blood flow to the lungs is likely to increase as expected and this could be more harmful than good. This camp believes that waiting a couple days would not be good and would prefer if that is the case to open his chest sometime tomorrow to put a band on his pulmonary artery. The other side believes that his naturally restricted artery along with the minimized flow from the ASD (they didn't open it wide open but instead slowly increased its size to balance pressure) could create a balance that is ideal with no further procedure for several months!
As you can see there are two pretty big extremes here, but the good news is that your prayers are working! Landen is a rock star and continues to push hard on his own, and we all are doing what we can to help him :) My specific prayer request is this. We hope that his balance is perfect as he is right now. That his breathing tube can be pulled and he can start the process of recovery so we can go home with him. This does NOT mean that his story ends, but it does mean that he would be stable enough to grow and develop just like any other newborn baby would and when the time is right we would revisit the next steps. We will talk more about the details of those next two phases later, but for now please pray that he recovers through the night and that he is balanced and stable as he is now without having to do another (slightly more invasive) procedure to correct the increased blood flow.
Ashley will be staying the night up here with Landen and I, so PLEASE pray that she gets the rest she needs while she is here, and that she feels comfortable enough to get a nights rest in her own bed while she recovers tomorrow night. I want her here so she can be with her son....but I need my wife to be well if we are going to do this together ;)
Until tomorrow!
Enjoying the journey,
George, Ashley, Maddie, Lyla and Landen :)
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