Mom at Shands, 15 Oct

Hi, Everybody! The waiting games continues. The echo cardiogram technician was a no-show yesterday. We haven't heard about the chest x-ray taken early this morning. When compared to the chest x-ray taken yesterday it should show whether the fluid buildup in Mom's right lung continues and at what rate. The IV drip to raise the blood pressure was deliberately set low to avoid fluid buildup in the lungs. Unfortunately, it may be too slow to raise the BP effectively. One doctor said that Mom's sleepiness could be due to low blood pressure. She moaned some last night and when she said that she was hurting all over they gave her another dose of morphine via the IV drip. Mom sleeps on her sides. They had to turn her to avoid developing bed sores which can be really bad news for a diabetic. Unfortunately, in the process of getting her to lie on her back yesterday they dislodged the chest tube. A decision not to re-insert the chest tube was made late yesterday afternoon .A colleague of Dr Leaphart came by this morning. He might have just learned about that decision when he read the charts. Now they are saying that the first attempt resulted in only 300 ml of fluid. With what was in the container when the chest tube popped out and a conservative estimate of spillage, the total amount of fluid could have been 1100 ml instead of the 2000 to 3000 estimated. Much depends on the outside lab's report and whether the fluid buildup continues. It will probably be tomorrow afternoon before we find out anything. Take care. Love, jonah