Up and Down

Today was a pretty hectic day.  There was a lot going on to try to get Matthew to the point where he could come off the vent...

The Good

The doctors and nurses heard a murmur, and the Peds Cardio fellow thought it sounded like a PDA.  We were very nervous that was what it was, as they might have to stop feedings to give him medicine for it.  They did an echo, and the cardiologist confirmed it is not a PDA (at least not right now) which is good news.  Matthew really looks forward to his food, and I really look forward to him growing from it.


The Bad

I'm told these are all "normal NICU things" but I have to put them in the Bad category because that's how I see them (they are neither Good nor Ugly).  When Matthew comes down to the low low vent settings, he seems to struggle more.  They ordered a chest x-ray this morning to try to "check all the boxes" (as Lynn, our primary nurse says) before having him come off the vent.  They noticed some hazy spots, meaning spots that weren't fully expanded.  It's unfortunate because his previous x-ray a few days ago was great.  I was told this could be a result of the lower vent settings, but we were really hoping for a nice good x-ray.  So.....

They started a few other things to help him along.  They upped his caffeine.  They also do a massage with a vibration thing on his chest every 4 hours to try to loosen up any mucus.  Then they also are adding in a diuretic to try to remove any fluid that is loosened up.  They also did a blood transfusion today as Matthew was getting a little anemic, and they hope this helps his blood carry more oxygen.

It certainly could have been a worse day, but we much prefer the boring days.  Unless, of course, the non-boring day was, "Hey Matthew was extubated and doing great!"  or  "Its a miracle, he has transformed into a full-term baby and can come home today!"


The Ugly

Nothing really that makes it into the Ugly category today - again fingers crossed that it stays that way.