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The Staff of SOH
Set Back In Deb's Recovery
- Thread starter OBIO
- Start date
Medical sciences can only go so far. After and during that, it up to God. May God be with you and your wife, OBIO.
H
hewman100
Guest
Still thinking of you both. Hope this is just a minor setback.
8 AM tomorrow Deb goes back into surgery. The neurosurgeon is going in to remove the shunt and to do a biopsy of the "unknow mass" as it is being called at this point...still not sure if it is an infection or a stroke or a hematoma or what. So, the biopsy will allow them to identify 100% what is going on in that area and once they know that, they will know for sure how to treat it.
They were giving Deb blood platelets and some whole blood today to counter act the aspirin she has been on.....the aspirin thinned her blood, now they are thickening it so she does not bleed excessively during the surgery.
When I got up to the hosptial at 11:30, Speech Therapy was in working with her. And Deb was brushing her teeth by herself...wasn't a dentist approved method I am sure, but she was brushing her teeth! And she was able to swallow some water...not a lot but she did swallow a few small spoons of water. That's good!
I had a sleepless night last night, so I am going to try to crash this evening for a while, get some sleep, get up, get ready and be at the hospital at 6 am. Maybe even 5 am.
OBIO
They were giving Deb blood platelets and some whole blood today to counter act the aspirin she has been on.....the aspirin thinned her blood, now they are thickening it so she does not bleed excessively during the surgery.
When I got up to the hosptial at 11:30, Speech Therapy was in working with her. And Deb was brushing her teeth by herself...wasn't a dentist approved method I am sure, but she was brushing her teeth! And she was able to swallow some water...not a lot but she did swallow a few small spoons of water. That's good!
I had a sleepless night last night, so I am going to try to crash this evening for a while, get some sleep, get up, get ready and be at the hospital at 6 am. Maybe even 5 am.
OBIO
E
egypt23spitfire
Guest
......our feelings run with ya
............take care of yerself dude:d
.....deep breaths,deep breaths and dont forget to eat
............take care of yerself dude:d
.....deep breaths,deep breaths and dont forget to eat
The_Editor
Charter Member
Best wishes to the both of you.
After nearly 6 hours of nervous pacing in the waiting room, the doc had good news. It was NOT a stroke! From what he saw inititally, it looks like the shunt (drain tube) had failed some how and allowed a build up of normal brain fluid to collect around around the shunt and in the "channel" into which it was inserted. There was no outwardly visible signs of infection, no puss, no discoloration that would indicate infectious activity...but he did send a number of small biopsy pieces to the lab for culturing to rule out infection. He is sending the shunt back to the maker for them to analyze and he put in a temporary shunt (most of which is external) to do a rapid drain off of the excess brain fluids. Deb will be in recovery until about 4 PM then will be moved to Surgical ICU for a day or two to allow for the draining of the brain fluids...then back to Surgical Step Down for continued monitoring. If the swelling goes down and her functioning returns, she will be returning to Rehab. Additional CT/MRI scans will be done to monitor the swelling in the problem area.
One bright spot from yesterday's MRI....the area of the initial surgery, from where the tumor was removed, looked wonderful. The brain and brain stem, which had been compressed and pressed to the side, have expanded to their full size and returned to a normal, natural position and looks like there had never been a tumor the size of a Chihuahua puppy there.
I am going to take a nap...have had 6 hours sleep in the last 3 days....and will go back up to the hospital later this evening to see Deb.
OH....another bright spot...when Deb returns to Rehab, it will be considered a new intake, and her time in rehab will start all over and the November 1 insurance run out will be totally voided. This is good as it will give Deb approximately 8 full weeks of Rehab time, beginning with her return to the Rehab ward.
OBIO
One bright spot from yesterday's MRI....the area of the initial surgery, from where the tumor was removed, looked wonderful. The brain and brain stem, which had been compressed and pressed to the side, have expanded to their full size and returned to a normal, natural position and looks like there had never been a tumor the size of a Chihuahua puppy there.
I am going to take a nap...have had 6 hours sleep in the last 3 days....and will go back up to the hospital later this evening to see Deb.
OH....another bright spot...when Deb returns to Rehab, it will be considered a new intake, and her time in rehab will start all over and the November 1 insurance run out will be totally voided. This is good as it will give Deb approximately 8 full weeks of Rehab time, beginning with her return to the Rehab ward.
OBIO
H
hewman100
Guest
Fantastic to hear Tim. Give her our best wishes!
Cowboy1968
Charter Member
I will keep praying for her...........you and her are often in my thoughts
miamieagle
Charter Member
Keep your headup and keep praying. I will pray for you and your wife. This episode in your life will only make your bond stronger.
My wife is in the hospital now with a minor case of pneumonia. I'm not comparing the two illnesses, but I am finding out how important that you also take care of yourself. I've told her of y'alls problems and she wanted me to emphasize that we are BOTH praying for you two.
Hern
Prayers are in the air for you and your wife.
______
Just got off the phone with my mother-in-law....I have not been up to see Deb since the surgery...too many days with too little sleep has taken its toll on me..but I have pretty much caught up on sleep now I suppose, since I slept from 4 pm yesterday until 2 am this morning, was up for 5 hours then slept from about 7 this morning until noon. But the Momma in Law said that Deb was talking more than she had for the last few days, a bit more active than she had been for the last few days, so the new shunt seems to be doing its job and releaving the pressure on her brain. Will be getting ready here in a bit and heading up to see my baby. Had a few things to tend to and a few more things to take care of before heading up. Will pass on the multitude of hellos and all the out pouring of prayer and support. I make sure to let her know that all my Sim Brothers are keeping her lifted up in prayer (along with a ton of people on the fish keeping forum that Deb and I are members of doing likewise)...and knowing that people from around the world are praying for her gives her strength and brings a smile to her face.
OBIO
Prayers are in the air for you and your wife.
______
Just got off the phone with my mother-in-law....I have not been up to see Deb since the surgery...too many days with too little sleep has taken its toll on me..but I have pretty much caught up on sleep now I suppose, since I slept from 4 pm yesterday until 2 am this morning, was up for 5 hours then slept from about 7 this morning until noon. But the Momma in Law said that Deb was talking more than she had for the last few days, a bit more active than she had been for the last few days, so the new shunt seems to be doing its job and releaving the pressure on her brain. Will be getting ready here in a bit and heading up to see my baby. Had a few things to tend to and a few more things to take care of before heading up. Will pass on the multitude of hellos and all the out pouring of prayer and support. I make sure to let her know that all my Sim Brothers are keeping her lifted up in prayer (along with a ton of people on the fish keeping forum that Deb and I are members of doing likewise)...and knowing that people from around the world are praying for her gives her strength and brings a smile to her face.
OBIO
After making my post at about 1 this afternoon, I went back to sleep for another 5 hours. I am now well rested and alert again, all my reflexes are back to normal and by vision is not fuzzy...it's amazing what happens when you go too long with too little sleep.
Went to see Deb around 8 this evening...and what a difference. She is much more alert, more talkative, able to move better, the swelling in her neck and face is down greatly. The new shunt has drained out around 160 mililitres of brain fluid since yesterday morning....which is A LOT. With the excess brain fluids being pulled out of her brain, the pressure is reduced, the brain swelling is reduced and things are working better. Still not back to where she was this time last week, but much better than how she was Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Her vitals are solid as a rock (have been since day one).
I was filling Deb in on what the neurologist said about his findings, and that he said that she should soon be back in Rehab and on the road to recovery within a week or so. Deb reached up with her right hand (which has 2 IV ports in it and is wrapped in tape to hold the lines in place) and patted my face and said. "We're going to be alright." Yes, we are going to be alright....won't be alright tomorrow, or next week, but we will be alright in time.
I passed on all the well wishes and the fact that she has prayers in abundance being said for her...and she smiled a bit. And I reassured her that I love her dearly, deeply and forever and ever and ever.
OBIO
Went to see Deb around 8 this evening...and what a difference. She is much more alert, more talkative, able to move better, the swelling in her neck and face is down greatly. The new shunt has drained out around 160 mililitres of brain fluid since yesterday morning....which is A LOT. With the excess brain fluids being pulled out of her brain, the pressure is reduced, the brain swelling is reduced and things are working better. Still not back to where she was this time last week, but much better than how she was Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Her vitals are solid as a rock (have been since day one).
I was filling Deb in on what the neurologist said about his findings, and that he said that she should soon be back in Rehab and on the road to recovery within a week or so. Deb reached up with her right hand (which has 2 IV ports in it and is wrapped in tape to hold the lines in place) and patted my face and said. "We're going to be alright." Yes, we are going to be alright....won't be alright tomorrow, or next week, but we will be alright in time.
I passed on all the well wishes and the fact that she has prayers in abundance being said for her...and she smiled a bit. And I reassured her that I love her dearly, deeply and forever and ever and ever.
OBIO
At 6 Pm yesterday evening, a total of 340 ML of brain fluid had been removed from Deb's head....and that is far beyond normal. As a result of that removal, the pressure in her brain is down more, she was more talkative, more alert, more active. Not so much when I was there, as she had just been given a good dose of Morphine for pain..but earlier in the day she was much more with it. Today, I will be going up mid-afternoon to catch her when she is not so tired and hopefully not medicated into a stupor so I can get a good gauge of how well she is coming along after this latest surgery.
OBIO
OBIO
What a difference a couple days and the removal of a bunch of excess brain fluid can make. Deb was moved from Surgical ICU to Surgical Step Down, the temporary shunt was removed. Today, she was talking much more, more alert, more active...still not up to where she was in Rehab...but getting closer. Her sense of humor has returned full force and she had her mother and I cracking up.
The attending physician from the Rehab Ward was in to see Deb and gave her a run through testing her neurological state, her cognitive state, her motor skills...and he said that she should be able to return to Rehab in a matter of days.
And there is a 100% rule out of a stroke. The culturing of the biopsy pieces collected Thursday have not grown any bacteria, so infection is 100% ruled out. Which leaves A) faulty shunt and B) allergic reaction to the shunt. Four doctors putting their heads together and looking at all the signs, symptoms, CT and MRI scans and the information collected during Thursday's operation have concluded that it is a combination of A and B. An allergic reaction to the shunt that resulted in a bit of swelling that collapsed the shunt to the point of it failing to remove brain fluids.
OBIO
The attending physician from the Rehab Ward was in to see Deb and gave her a run through testing her neurological state, her cognitive state, her motor skills...and he said that she should be able to return to Rehab in a matter of days.
And there is a 100% rule out of a stroke. The culturing of the biopsy pieces collected Thursday have not grown any bacteria, so infection is 100% ruled out. Which leaves A) faulty shunt and B) allergic reaction to the shunt. Four doctors putting their heads together and looking at all the signs, symptoms, CT and MRI scans and the information collected during Thursday's operation have concluded that it is a combination of A and B. An allergic reaction to the shunt that resulted in a bit of swelling that collapsed the shunt to the point of it failing to remove brain fluids.
OBIO