So far he's doing well on the nasal cannula 24 hours + and going strong. They've now moved him to the level II NICU (that's the next step up). He's got his own room but that comes with a catch. One of the reasons they moved him was he was ready for level II and not needing the acute care in Level III. The other reason is he's been found to have a colony of MRSA. Now he doesn't have any active infections from it persay so they're not giving him any antibiotics but they're going to keep him in isolation meaning we have to wear gowns, gloves, masks when we see him. That's going to stuck for the next week /sigh. Upside is his private room will have a couch in it and we can rest there and it's a lot more privacy since I'll be starting to feed him soon.
Course now I'm more paranoid than I was about germs. I already have hand sanitizer everywhere in the house and already get on people about using it. I'm going to have to get more anal about it too. The reason we have to wear gowns and masks is so he doesn't infect us. I'm worried now that this nagging nasal congestion which is common for me could be something worse since it's not going away. Which if it doesn't get better in a few days I'm going to the docs and making them do a culture which they almost never do. Last thing I need is some nasty skin infection from it where I lose some flesh or worse it goes to my organs especially after all my organs have been through in the past few months.
On a more positive note he's up to 4lbs 7 ounces and he's 45 cm long which is 17.7 inches. He's eating 36 ccs x 8 per day which is a whopping 288 ccs. So he's gaining weight fast and eating a lot! He was even hungry before it was time to be fed which is rare for him after they raise his feeds. So I wouldn't doubt it if they raise his feeds again. This is going to be troublesome to make enough milk to give to him during a few feeds I'm already up to 2-3 pumpings for a days worth. They won't let the milk be more than 48 hours old though I'm still pretty sure I'm within the time lines some of the nurses thought I was cutting it close by sending it the evening previous. Hence why I take fresh milk every morning now. IMO 6 hours over the deadline really isn't going to make a huge difference when breast milk is good for about a week in the fridge :P.
Anyhew I ramble on hopefully when they check him again for MRSA (next Monday or so) it will no longer be present and we can stop with the isolation proceedures. I've yet to see his new room/floor but I'll see it tomorrow when I go. I have a feeling I'm not going to want to hang around long if I have to stay in scrubs the whole time not to mention I tend to break out when wearing those gloves for any period of time. I've been able to hold him for about 1.5-3 hours a day but I'm guessing for the next week or so that's going to be considerably less which upsets me becuase he's been doing so well when being held. His oxygen requirements and his feeds go much better when he's held.
WRU super magic to eradicate this superbug .. sucks supposedly something like 60% of hospital patients (or more) are at the least carriers of MERSA. I know that 2-3 other babies in his pod (he just left from) had it and he was one of the last to not get it. Well hopefully I'll have good news come the next week or two and this nasty bug will be gone.
S
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
12-28-2008 Zachary Update
He was doing somewhat ok he looked paler than normal and brady'd at least 2 times while I was there. They may need to weight adjust his caffeine again which we noticed last time he was bradying a lot (ie heart rate getting dangerously low). It was our eldest's birthday so we didn't get to stay very long today. I did hold him for about an hour and a half. He's very happy while being held.
He's up to 33 cc's at each feeding so he's growing fast! He's now 4lbs 1 ounce! He's more than doubled his at birth weight. It's amazing how fast they grow. He feels to me like a normal size baby now :).
Funny story yesterday he got his feet down on my legs (as he loves to do) and decided to pick up his head and entire body with he legs and arms. I wasn't expecting this and had my head down near his and he nearly bonked me in the head ROFL. So I'd say it's a good sign he's feeling better to have that kind of energy. He's all muscle!
Not sure if they're still going to try him on the cannula tomorrow or the 1st but I'm hoping they up the caffeine before trying again just in case.
All in all a busy but productive day. Zach's doing better and better each day and that's all we can hope for!
S
He's up to 33 cc's at each feeding so he's growing fast! He's now 4lbs 1 ounce! He's more than doubled his at birth weight. It's amazing how fast they grow. He feels to me like a normal size baby now :).
Funny story yesterday he got his feet down on my legs (as he loves to do) and decided to pick up his head and entire body with he legs and arms. I wasn't expecting this and had my head down near his and he nearly bonked me in the head ROFL. So I'd say it's a good sign he's feeling better to have that kind of energy. He's all muscle!
Not sure if they're still going to try him on the cannula tomorrow or the 1st but I'm hoping they up the caffeine before trying again just in case.
All in all a busy but productive day. Zach's doing better and better each day and that's all we can hope for!
S
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Zachary Christmas Update
Well he was doing very well today I held him for a long time becuase every time he thought I was moving him to put him back he'd start crying like you were killing him. Also, he had a good hold on my hair (he loves it) and if you tried to move it or take it out of his hand he'd throw a royal fit lol. So I'd say he's feeling pretty well today.
Some volunteer groups had Santa come around to visit all the babies and they took photos I've got Zach's photo with Santa on the flickr site. Also, they dropped off blankets from project linus. Our Girl Scout Troop had been thinking of doing them for kids in the hospital and it's nice to see there are lots of groups that do they did a wonderful job on the blanket Zach received.
He's up to 3 lbs 14 ounces almost 4 pounds ! He's getting big and heavy that may not sound like a lot but you'd be surprised how much that weighs hehe.
They're going to try the cannual for a 3rd time on Monday 29th and if they don't think he's well then they'll try again on the 1st. We'll see he's doing much better with fewer and fewer dstats/Bradys etc He's had no Bradys or Apnea for several days so he may be ready for the cannula. The only thing is his oxygen has been going up a bit from 26% to mid 30s. They say it's from fluid in his lungs either he'll clear it out or they'll need to give medicine to do so. They're waiting to see a few days how his oxygen requirements are and decide if he needs medicine or not so far they're leaving him be.
He's up to 31ccs now on his feeds that a little over an ounce a feeding! He's growing fast and starting to take in more food which is good. He's been tolerating his feeds well :).
His Echo on Tues was good nothing is getting worse. They can't really tell if the PDA is any smaller it looks about the same size. Although we'd like it to be closing more at least it's not getting bigger. His heart looks good and the ventricles that are enlarged aren't getting any bigger so that's also a positive. So at this time they're not recommending surgery for the PDA they're just going to try go get him off the CPAP so his lungs are working harder and that should tell his body to close the PDA and therefore not need the surgery. The catch 22 is more stress on the heart can mean congestive heart failure in which case they'd have to do the surgery. So we'll see so far it's a waiting game.
Not much else to report other than we're waiting for him to grow some more :) most of his issues will resolve as he gets bigger.
Some volunteer groups had Santa come around to visit all the babies and they took photos I've got Zach's photo with Santa on the flickr site. Also, they dropped off blankets from project linus. Our Girl Scout Troop had been thinking of doing them for kids in the hospital and it's nice to see there are lots of groups that do they did a wonderful job on the blanket Zach received.
He's up to 3 lbs 14 ounces almost 4 pounds ! He's getting big and heavy that may not sound like a lot but you'd be surprised how much that weighs hehe.
They're going to try the cannual for a 3rd time on Monday 29th and if they don't think he's well then they'll try again on the 1st. We'll see he's doing much better with fewer and fewer dstats/Bradys etc He's had no Bradys or Apnea for several days so he may be ready for the cannula. The only thing is his oxygen has been going up a bit from 26% to mid 30s. They say it's from fluid in his lungs either he'll clear it out or they'll need to give medicine to do so. They're waiting to see a few days how his oxygen requirements are and decide if he needs medicine or not so far they're leaving him be.
He's up to 31ccs now on his feeds that a little over an ounce a feeding! He's growing fast and starting to take in more food which is good. He's been tolerating his feeds well :).
His Echo on Tues was good nothing is getting worse. They can't really tell if the PDA is any smaller it looks about the same size. Although we'd like it to be closing more at least it's not getting bigger. His heart looks good and the ventricles that are enlarged aren't getting any bigger so that's also a positive. So at this time they're not recommending surgery for the PDA they're just going to try go get him off the CPAP so his lungs are working harder and that should tell his body to close the PDA and therefore not need the surgery. The catch 22 is more stress on the heart can mean congestive heart failure in which case they'd have to do the surgery. So we'll see so far it's a waiting game.
Not much else to report other than we're waiting for him to grow some more :) most of his issues will resolve as he gets bigger.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Zachary Update 12-22-2008
He's looking much better today definately has more energy. Fought like normal when adjusting his CPAP this morning. He's on 40% oxygen and I'm guessing that's because he had 1 prong out all monring till I saw it and had the nurse help fix it. Hopefully it's not from him getting sick because his lungs filling up can cause that too.
I was there during rounds this morning and they're taking him off the diuretics and sodium and seeing how he does with the echo tomorrow. They're going to give another round of lasics too that they hope will close the PDA. The doctor stated they may have to make him worse to see what's the best course to make him better in the long run. I really don't want to see that o.O but I understand the situation we're in and they really don't have much choice it's either that or surgery and they're trying to prevent surgery if at all possible.
So I'll have more to give updates on tomorrow and we'll see.
S
I was there during rounds this morning and they're taking him off the diuretics and sodium and seeing how he does with the echo tomorrow. They're going to give another round of lasics too that they hope will close the PDA. The doctor stated they may have to make him worse to see what's the best course to make him better in the long run. I really don't want to see that o.O but I understand the situation we're in and they really don't have much choice it's either that or surgery and they're trying to prevent surgery if at all possible.
So I'll have more to give updates on tomorrow and we'll see.
S
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Zachary Update 12-21-08
He's doing much better today I'm happy to report! He's got a lot of his energy back and was able to suck on the pacifier nearly the whole time he was feeding mid day. He overall just looks better today.
Grandma Nancy, Uncle Chris, Dad and I got to visit with him today. He seems a lot happier and his oxygen has been sitting at 30% most of today. He had no Brady attacks or Apnea of Prematurity (AOP) last night or today so far.
He's up to 3lbs 8 ounces as of today and up to 28 ccs x 8 /day for his feeds. Tuesday we'll know more about the echo and if they're going to try the cannula with him again.
S
Grandma Nancy, Uncle Chris, Dad and I got to visit with him today. He seems a lot happier and his oxygen has been sitting at 30% most of today. He had no Brady attacks or Apnea of Prematurity (AOP) last night or today so far.
He's up to 3lbs 8 ounces as of today and up to 28 ccs x 8 /day for his feeds. Tuesday we'll know more about the echo and if they're going to try the cannula with him again.
S
12-20-2008 Zachary Update
He was pretty tired still today just like yesterday. I couldn't hold him for long as he started Bradying soon after holding him. Graned he did seem to be having some gas pains and moving him may have moved some gas bubbles which caused him some pain. So I mostly let him be today so he could rest.
I'm hoping tomorrow will be a better day for him and he seems more like himself. I read that most of the Apnea and Brady spells usually clear up by gestational week 44 that's mid to end of Februrary. So we'll just have to wait a while and see. His breating wasn't very regular today he was doing a lot of what they call periodic breathing hopefully it's a progression step of his lungs /breathing mechanisms.
Keep your prayers going for Zach he needs them right now to close his PDA and get off the CPAP and start feeding normally.
S
I'm hoping tomorrow will be a better day for him and he seems more like himself. I read that most of the Apnea and Brady spells usually clear up by gestational week 44 that's mid to end of Februrary. So we'll just have to wait a while and see. His breating wasn't very regular today he was doing a lot of what they call periodic breathing hopefully it's a progression step of his lungs /breathing mechanisms.
Keep your prayers going for Zach he needs them right now to close his PDA and get off the CPAP and start feeding normally.
S
Friday, December 19, 2008
Zachary Update 12-19-2008
Today you can tell he's tired from yesterday's ordeal (the Brady's) so he slept most of today not really intersted in trying to suck on his pacifier. I held him for a good while and he was fairly happy and didn't want to move. I wish I had unlimited time to hold him but alas I had to get back to the office the work waits for no one :P.
He's up to 3lbs 7 ounces half way to 4 lbs woot. So he's growing quite well. Haven't heard anything about the echo yet not sure if they've even done it yet or when they will. So he's pretty quiet and sleeping today will update soon again.
S
He's up to 3lbs 7 ounces half way to 4 lbs woot. So he's growing quite well. Haven't heard anything about the echo yet not sure if they've even done it yet or when they will. So he's pretty quiet and sleeping today will update soon again.
S
Zachary update 12-18-2008
Well they tried him on the cannula again but that didn't last long. He did fine while I was holding him for 3 hours but as soon as I had to move him and put him back in the isolette he started bradying. He did it 4 more times while I went back to my office so by the time I returned at 6 to meet the hubby he was back on CPAP.
So eventually he'll get off of it but his brain still needs some time. They said usually the main reason they brady is their brain isn't fully ready to assume remembering to breathe all the time. The CPAP although he's breathing on his own always it keeps the aveoli open so if he forgets to breathe for a moment they're open and getting oxygen.
His first eye exam was good the doctor found no issues after dialating his eyes. So yay for the most part as we can tell now his eyes are forming normally. There's no way to see if there's sight loss until he's older but I'll take well forming eyes any day :P
Other than those issues he did pretty well Thursday. Hopefully, we'll know more about the status of his PDA Friday after his echo.
So eventually he'll get off of it but his brain still needs some time. They said usually the main reason they brady is their brain isn't fully ready to assume remembering to breathe all the time. The CPAP although he's breathing on his own always it keeps the aveoli open so if he forgets to breathe for a moment they're open and getting oxygen.
His first eye exam was good the doctor found no issues after dialating his eyes. So yay for the most part as we can tell now his eyes are forming normally. There's no way to see if there's sight loss until he's older but I'll take well forming eyes any day :P
Other than those issues he did pretty well Thursday. Hopefully, we'll know more about the status of his PDA Friday after his echo.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Zach update 12-17-2008
He's doing well today not much to update other than they've been able to steadly go down on his oxygen requirements. He's been on around 25% all day so that's really good. He wasn't having as many issues with the CPAP coming out of his nose (by his doing or otherwise). That's always a good thing.
He's started while I'm holding him after he eats during lunchtime that he sees my hair and is facinated by it. It just plays with it and today he tried putting it in his mouth. I thought that was funny lol. I even got out one of his rattles and he just looked at it but w/out interest. Bring back my curls and he's all excited and just playing with it with his hands and making all kinds of cooing sounds.
So I'm glad to see he's cooing and finding things interesting to play with I'm guessing that's a very good sign and more than I expected him to do at this age. He's only 33 weeks gestation he'd normally have 5-7 weeks to go in the womb.
So all in all not much to update today he's doing well with few dstat incidents mostly only if the prongs come out of his nose and he comes right back on his own w/in a min w/out intervention.
S
He's started while I'm holding him after he eats during lunchtime that he sees my hair and is facinated by it. It just plays with it and today he tried putting it in his mouth. I thought that was funny lol. I even got out one of his rattles and he just looked at it but w/out interest. Bring back my curls and he's all excited and just playing with it with his hands and making all kinds of cooing sounds.
So I'm glad to see he's cooing and finding things interesting to play with I'm guessing that's a very good sign and more than I expected him to do at this age. He's only 33 weeks gestation he'd normally have 5-7 weeks to go in the womb.
So all in all not much to update today he's doing well with few dstat incidents mostly only if the prongs come out of his nose and he comes right back on his own w/in a min w/out intervention.
S
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Zachary Update 12-16-2008
He was resting peacefully this morning so I didn't mess with him much tried to see if he wanted his pacifier and he was more interested in sleeping :P they've got him in his blue snuggy again it's really cute. I brought more socks for him since he seemed to keep running out.
He's still on CPAP and probably will be for several more days while they determine what to do about his PDA. It's not closing fast enough that they'd like and his heart ventricles (2 of them) are starting to enlarge to accomodate that excess blood being pumped through that extra artery. They're hoping the CPAP etc will encourage his body to close the PDA as the lungs request more blood support. The PDA being open puts strain on the heart so they're getting a consult from a Cardiologist on the matter. We'll know more after they do the echo at the end of the week.
He was down to 26% oxygen this morning which is stellar and still at level 5 for CPAP the lowest setting it will go to. This is all very good meaning he's breating well on his own and nearly down to the % of oxygen we breathe around 21%.
He was 3 lbs 3 ounces last time they weighed him and he's still 16.5 inches (42 cm) long ;).
He's still on CPAP and probably will be for several more days while they determine what to do about his PDA. It's not closing fast enough that they'd like and his heart ventricles (2 of them) are starting to enlarge to accomodate that excess blood being pumped through that extra artery. They're hoping the CPAP etc will encourage his body to close the PDA as the lungs request more blood support. The PDA being open puts strain on the heart so they're getting a consult from a Cardiologist on the matter. We'll know more after they do the echo at the end of the week.
He was down to 26% oxygen this morning which is stellar and still at level 5 for CPAP the lowest setting it will go to. This is all very good meaning he's breating well on his own and nearly down to the % of oxygen we breathe around 21%.
He was 3 lbs 3 ounces last time they weighed him and he's still 16.5 inches (42 cm) long ;).
Monday, December 15, 2008
Morning update 12-15-2008
Well I came in this morning first day back working in the office I'm exhausted but went to see Zach as fast as I could get up there.
They had to put him back on CPAP they said he was Dstating too frequently while on the Cannula (oxygen only). So they'll leave him on CPAP for a while and try again. He's still on the lowest CPAP settings and they're just going to wait for his oxygen requirements to get lower they're still in the mid 30s. Originally, I thought they were going to wait till he got down to the low 20s to try the Cannula that's what they'd said previously. So maybe they'll wait longer this time and try again.
He looked good this morning despite his dstating yesterday and the CPAP being taped to his head again.
Probably will be more updates this afternoon since I'll be in to see him often I can update more frequently.
S
They had to put him back on CPAP they said he was Dstating too frequently while on the Cannula (oxygen only). So they'll leave him on CPAP for a while and try again. He's still on the lowest CPAP settings and they're just going to wait for his oxygen requirements to get lower they're still in the mid 30s. Originally, I thought they were going to wait till he got down to the low 20s to try the Cannula that's what they'd said previously. So maybe they'll wait longer this time and try again.
He looked good this morning despite his dstating yesterday and the CPAP being taped to his head again.
Probably will be more updates this afternoon since I'll be in to see him often I can update more frequently.
S
12-14-2008 Zachary Update
Andy went to see the baby today and just as he got there they'd moved Zachary off the CPAP and onto the Cannula (sp). That's just some tubes to give him oxygen nothing else ie he's having absolutely no help on breathing. The CPAP gave positive pressure and he went on that on Thursday. I'm amazed they took him off the CPAP so quickly.
They say they'll start trying to bottle/breast feed once he works out his breathing and stops the dstat/apnea episodes. He's still doing them after he eats etc so it may take him a bit to stop doing that but once they subside they'll work on the feeding without a tube.
I'm really amazed at how fast he's progressing I mean usually it was weeks with the ventilator I'm not used to things moving so fast in a matter of days.
He's also up to 28 ml x 8 / day = 224 ml/day.
His Baby shower was really nice today we had a lot of fun and got a lot of great things for Zachary. I went to Babys R Us and Target and got most of everything else we'll need so I think we're mostly ready :).
The hope is he'll be able to come home mid January - Early Februrary. That's my best guess going by his weight, current progression etc. His original due date was first week in Februrary and that's generally when they get to come home. Of course he's doing everything kind of quickly soo who knows :P So I've only got good news to report for little Zachary atm. Tomorrow (Monday) I start my 4:45 am mornings (ugh). But at least I'll get to see Zach many times throughout the day and spend a good amount of time in the morning/evening with him :). Yay for work in the building connected to his hospital :P.
S
They say they'll start trying to bottle/breast feed once he works out his breathing and stops the dstat/apnea episodes. He's still doing them after he eats etc so it may take him a bit to stop doing that but once they subside they'll work on the feeding without a tube.
I'm really amazed at how fast he's progressing I mean usually it was weeks with the ventilator I'm not used to things moving so fast in a matter of days.
He's also up to 28 ml x 8 / day = 224 ml/day.
His Baby shower was really nice today we had a lot of fun and got a lot of great things for Zachary. I went to Babys R Us and Target and got most of everything else we'll need so I think we're mostly ready :).
The hope is he'll be able to come home mid January - Early Februrary. That's my best guess going by his weight, current progression etc. His original due date was first week in Februrary and that's generally when they get to come home. Of course he's doing everything kind of quickly soo who knows :P So I've only got good news to report for little Zachary atm. Tomorrow (Monday) I start my 4:45 am mornings (ugh). But at least I'll get to see Zach many times throughout the day and spend a good amount of time in the morning/evening with him :). Yay for work in the building connected to his hospital :P.
S
Sunday, December 14, 2008
12-13-2008 Zach Update
Due to getting everything ready for the baby shower tomorrow (well really today since I'm writing it late) this update is a bit behind.
He was doing pretty well when we went to see him. The nurse said he'd had a few apnea episodes and a couple DStats but mostly after he ate. He tends to hold his breath when he's got gas or making poo :). They said as long as that's the only time he's having those episodes he should be ok to stay on CPAP and not be re-intubated but if he starts having apnea and Dstating frequently during a shift they'll have to re-intubate. So far this hasn't been the case.
He also went down some on his oxygen today he'd been in the mid to low 30s so this is a good sign. The goal is to get him down to low 20s/high teens for oxygen before they'll consider putting him on the cannula (just oxygen up the nose).
I can tell the nurses have been working with him and the pacifier since he got it on Thursday when I was there. Today he took it happily and was sucking like he'd been doing it forever. Thursday when we gave it to him he not only didn't want anyone near his face but he didn't know what to do with the pacifier. Had to keep holidng it in his mouth and moving his tongue back into position. So needless to say it was nice to see him sucking on it like a pro and his stats went up high when he was sucking on it he seemed really happy and comforted by it. Didn't take him long at all to pick that up.
The nurse warned me on Thursday that some babies in the NICU who are on the ventilator for a while get "nipple aversion" and they don't like anything near their faces. He was acting really pissy when I tried to wipe his face and seemed scared like I was going to put that dreadful tube back down his mouth. So I kept working on touching his face in a gentle way and saying soothing things till he stayed calm while I touched his face instead of freaking out. After about the 4th attempt and some hours later I tried the pacifier and got him to suck a bit on it while he was feeding (tube). This way he associates eating with sucking becuase pretty soon he's going to have to work for his food no more food in the tube :P
So overall he's been doing pretty well and hopefully this stays this way. The CPAP does make his stats change dramatically because he's responsible for his breathing and that scares you when you see him go from 175 heartbeat down to 120 or less then back up to 150 +. He'll start dstating and you just pray he recovers quickly and he usually does but that's some scary 30 s or so while you wait for his brain to kick in and say hey... need to breathe here.
I'll keep you all posted on any new developments and how the baby shower goes tomorrow. We've got lots of great food, prizes and fun planned and I can't wait to see any of you that are coming!
S
He was doing pretty well when we went to see him. The nurse said he'd had a few apnea episodes and a couple DStats but mostly after he ate. He tends to hold his breath when he's got gas or making poo :). They said as long as that's the only time he's having those episodes he should be ok to stay on CPAP and not be re-intubated but if he starts having apnea and Dstating frequently during a shift they'll have to re-intubate. So far this hasn't been the case.
He also went down some on his oxygen today he'd been in the mid to low 30s so this is a good sign. The goal is to get him down to low 20s/high teens for oxygen before they'll consider putting him on the cannula (just oxygen up the nose).
I can tell the nurses have been working with him and the pacifier since he got it on Thursday when I was there. Today he took it happily and was sucking like he'd been doing it forever. Thursday when we gave it to him he not only didn't want anyone near his face but he didn't know what to do with the pacifier. Had to keep holidng it in his mouth and moving his tongue back into position. So needless to say it was nice to see him sucking on it like a pro and his stats went up high when he was sucking on it he seemed really happy and comforted by it. Didn't take him long at all to pick that up.
The nurse warned me on Thursday that some babies in the NICU who are on the ventilator for a while get "nipple aversion" and they don't like anything near their faces. He was acting really pissy when I tried to wipe his face and seemed scared like I was going to put that dreadful tube back down his mouth. So I kept working on touching his face in a gentle way and saying soothing things till he stayed calm while I touched his face instead of freaking out. After about the 4th attempt and some hours later I tried the pacifier and got him to suck a bit on it while he was feeding (tube). This way he associates eating with sucking becuase pretty soon he's going to have to work for his food no more food in the tube :P
So overall he's been doing pretty well and hopefully this stays this way. The CPAP does make his stats change dramatically because he's responsible for his breathing and that scares you when you see him go from 175 heartbeat down to 120 or less then back up to 150 +. He'll start dstating and you just pray he recovers quickly and he usually does but that's some scary 30 s or so while you wait for his brain to kick in and say hey... need to breathe here.
I'll keep you all posted on any new developments and how the baby shower goes tomorrow. We've got lots of great food, prizes and fun planned and I can't wait to see any of you that are coming!
S
Friday, December 12, 2008
12-12-2008 Zachary Update
Yesterday was a BIG day for Mr. Zachary. They took him off the ventilator and put him on CPAP he is now OFFICALLY breathing on his own. He was at mid 40s Oxygen all yesterday while he acclimated but that's to be expected. Yesterday he only had 1 Apnea episode and it was after he ate. He tends to hold his breath when he's pushing out gas or poo so that's not abnormal. As long as he doesn't start having apnea 1x + per hour he won't be re-intubated.
He's doing great today his nurse said. They've increased feeds to 25 ccs x 8 x per day woot. I know yesterday he was having a FIT when he didn't get fed right at the hour. I mean thrashing around in his incubator like the attitude of fine you're not going to feed me I'm going to rise up out of this isolette and Go FIND my OWN food ROFL. Yesteray I was trying to soothe him to calm him down but he was having NONE of it. All he wanted was food and he was going to continue thrashing about and screaming until he got it. Sooo, hopefully on the larger feeds he won't be screaming as much about next feeding time.
Today he's been down to 36% oxygen all day and at the lowest level for their CPAP which is level 6 (that's the pressure). They said once we get the oxygen down to what we breathe 21% ish or low 20s high teens then they'll look at putting him on the cannula (just oxygen up the nose). So he'll probably be on CPAP for 1-2 weeks hopefully that's it and his lungs are ready to do it on their own completely with no positive pressure to keep the air sacks open. The one nurse mentioned level 5 for pressure but yesterday the nurse said usually 6 is the lowest they go in the NICU so we'll see.
The nurse said he was fussing much less today so that's a good sign! Keep up the great work Zachary!
S
He's doing great today his nurse said. They've increased feeds to 25 ccs x 8 x per day woot. I know yesterday he was having a FIT when he didn't get fed right at the hour. I mean thrashing around in his incubator like the attitude of fine you're not going to feed me I'm going to rise up out of this isolette and Go FIND my OWN food ROFL. Yesteray I was trying to soothe him to calm him down but he was having NONE of it. All he wanted was food and he was going to continue thrashing about and screaming until he got it. Sooo, hopefully on the larger feeds he won't be screaming as much about next feeding time.
Today he's been down to 36% oxygen all day and at the lowest level for their CPAP which is level 6 (that's the pressure). They said once we get the oxygen down to what we breathe 21% ish or low 20s high teens then they'll look at putting him on the cannula (just oxygen up the nose). So he'll probably be on CPAP for 1-2 weeks hopefully that's it and his lungs are ready to do it on their own completely with no positive pressure to keep the air sacks open. The one nurse mentioned level 5 for pressure but yesterday the nurse said usually 6 is the lowest they go in the NICU so we'll see.
The nurse said he was fussing much less today so that's a good sign! Keep up the great work Zachary!
S
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Zachary Update 12-10-2008
He's been good all day and the evening. His oxygen has been in the upper 20s throughout the day. He's been tolerating all his feeds well and making healthy diapers.
Tonight at 12am they're taking him down to 20 bpm on his vent so that's the lowest setting he can be on before they take him off the vent completely. Hopefully, this will last and we only have to wait a few days before they take him off. With luck he won't extubate and restart the process all over. So pray for him that this is the final stretch as far as the vent is concerned.
They're running some labs in the morning for thyroid function to make sure that his needing sodium and potassium is just from the diuretcs and not something else. With all the thyroid problems in our family it's no telling but I do hope it's nothing and just due to the other medicine he's on to close the PDA.
So he's sleeping well and doing good overall.
S
Tonight at 12am they're taking him down to 20 bpm on his vent so that's the lowest setting he can be on before they take him off the vent completely. Hopefully, this will last and we only have to wait a few days before they take him off. With luck he won't extubate and restart the process all over. So pray for him that this is the final stretch as far as the vent is concerned.
They're running some labs in the morning for thyroid function to make sure that his needing sodium and potassium is just from the diuretcs and not something else. With all the thyroid problems in our family it's no telling but I do hope it's nothing and just due to the other medicine he's on to close the PDA.
So he's sleeping well and doing good overall.
S
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Zachary Update 12-09-2008
Hi all well just got off the phone with his nurse and she says he's resting comfortably in his blue snuggy that I bought him. Don't think he's been awake enough to enjoy his new rattles that our friends Jason and Laurel bought for him but when I go up next I'll be sure to take photos (I'll try to get him to hold one :P).
They've lowered his vent settings to 22 bpm and he's at 29% oxygen so they're weening him much slower this time than last time. I think after the fluid in his lungs due to the PDA still being open they're giving his lungs more time to acclimate. The xrays etc came back ok his tube is still placed where it needs to be (it's not coming out like last several times) and there's no more fluid etc that can be seen. The medicine did it's job.
They're still giving him supplements for potassium and sodium and he'll probably continue needing them as long as he's getting diuretics to help close the PDA.
His weight is still 2lbs 14 ounces and his length is up to 16 1/4 inches. The nurse said they probably won't go up on his feeding amounts until he's off the ventilator.
I asked a nurse the other day what the progression from the highest level NICU to the lower levels is. She said that usually they go from the ventilator to the CPAP and some kids ween off CPAP quickly. She said after they get him off CPAP he'll just be on oxygen in the nose and that's when they normally move them to the lower level (less acute) NICU and start them on bottle feeding/breast feeding etc. So we've still got a ways to go but I'm sure things will be much better by the end of December.
I've added a lot of photos to the Flickr site (check out the other public photos) if you want to see some of our recent Tree Farm and Tree Decorating day. I've also got photos up of Zach in his blue snuggy :) it's really cute.
S
They've lowered his vent settings to 22 bpm and he's at 29% oxygen so they're weening him much slower this time than last time. I think after the fluid in his lungs due to the PDA still being open they're giving his lungs more time to acclimate. The xrays etc came back ok his tube is still placed where it needs to be (it's not coming out like last several times) and there's no more fluid etc that can be seen. The medicine did it's job.
They're still giving him supplements for potassium and sodium and he'll probably continue needing them as long as he's getting diuretics to help close the PDA.
His weight is still 2lbs 14 ounces and his length is up to 16 1/4 inches. The nurse said they probably won't go up on his feeding amounts until he's off the ventilator.
I asked a nurse the other day what the progression from the highest level NICU to the lower levels is. She said that usually they go from the ventilator to the CPAP and some kids ween off CPAP quickly. She said after they get him off CPAP he'll just be on oxygen in the nose and that's when they normally move them to the lower level (less acute) NICU and start them on bottle feeding/breast feeding etc. So we've still got a ways to go but I'm sure things will be much better by the end of December.
I've added a lot of photos to the Flickr site (check out the other public photos) if you want to see some of our recent Tree Farm and Tree Decorating day. I've also got photos up of Zach in his blue snuggy :) it's really cute.
S
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Zachary Update 12-07-2008
Went to see him today and he's doing so/so. They've had to move his IV line sometimes 2 x a day mostly due to his veins being so tiny they can't support the IV for very long with as much medicine as he's getting. He'll need the IV for at least a few more days while they make sure his lungs are all cleared up.
His lungs were having a couple different issues this past week: He was building fluid up in his lungs (some of the reason for the fast weight gain). So they've got him on 2 medicines to remove the fluid from his lungs and other internal areas it shouldn't be. This will help him to breathe a lot better and hopefully he'll be able to transition to CPAP soon.
His vent settings are still at 25 breaths per minute and his oxygen is usually 26-32% so he's doing very well as far as that's concerned. When he maintains 20 bpm on the vent then they'll work on moving him over the CPAP.
He's now wearing clothes so I took some preemie outfits I'd found at the stores having no idea they'd start putting him in clothes soon. So when I saw him in the unsoft hospital shirts I brought in the clothes I'd gotten for him. They put him in the cutest outfit I had taken for pictures it's a full piece with footsties. I really don't know how they managed that one with all his wires but they did. He looks super cute in it. I'll have the photos up on flickr shortly for all to see.
His weight went down a bit from yesterday where it peaked at 3lbs and he's down to 2 lbs 14 ounces but he'll be back up to 3 lbs this week in no time. Part of the weight decline was due to the fluid in his lungs etc that they were trying to get out so that's a good sign.
He looks like he's having a rough patch atm but the nurses belive that's probably due to all the blood draws and IV moves as that takes a lot out of him. He's starting to make smile motions with his face/mouth which are really cute if you caress his head in a certain way. It's simply too cute for words.
Other than that he's doing well and being that he's a little over a month old he's coming along great.
S
His lungs were having a couple different issues this past week: He was building fluid up in his lungs (some of the reason for the fast weight gain). So they've got him on 2 medicines to remove the fluid from his lungs and other internal areas it shouldn't be. This will help him to breathe a lot better and hopefully he'll be able to transition to CPAP soon.
His vent settings are still at 25 breaths per minute and his oxygen is usually 26-32% so he's doing very well as far as that's concerned. When he maintains 20 bpm on the vent then they'll work on moving him over the CPAP.
He's now wearing clothes so I took some preemie outfits I'd found at the stores having no idea they'd start putting him in clothes soon. So when I saw him in the unsoft hospital shirts I brought in the clothes I'd gotten for him. They put him in the cutest outfit I had taken for pictures it's a full piece with footsties. I really don't know how they managed that one with all his wires but they did. He looks super cute in it. I'll have the photos up on flickr shortly for all to see.
His weight went down a bit from yesterday where it peaked at 3lbs and he's down to 2 lbs 14 ounces but he'll be back up to 3 lbs this week in no time. Part of the weight decline was due to the fluid in his lungs etc that they were trying to get out so that's a good sign.
He looks like he's having a rough patch atm but the nurses belive that's probably due to all the blood draws and IV moves as that takes a lot out of him. He's starting to make smile motions with his face/mouth which are really cute if you caress his head in a certain way. It's simply too cute for words.
Other than that he's doing well and being that he's a little over a month old he's coming along great.
S
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Zachary Update 12-04-2008
Just got off the phone with the nurses and he's having a good day today. From yesterday afternoon he was at 35 bpm for his respirator at 26-30% oxygen which was better than it had been but he still had a way to go. This morning at 5am they turned it down to 30 bpm and then a little while ago they were able to take him down to 25 bpm which is stellar! Once he's back down to 20 bpm they will start to try to ween him off the respirator again! He's bouncing back faster this time than he did last time after he extubated. Hopefully he makes it on CPAP this time before he extubates. So he's on 26% oxygen and the low respirator settings and breating mostly on his own thankfully. His blood gas tests have come back good so he's tolerating the new settings well.
She said he's tolerating the 21 ccs of milk 8 x a day well and they may go up on his feeds in the next few days which is great news. He's needing a little more sodium in his diet atm but that's mostly due to the fluid restrictions so they can close the PDA. So he's doing well overall and getting better each day!
S
She said he's tolerating the 21 ccs of milk 8 x a day well and they may go up on his feeds in the next few days which is great news. He's needing a little more sodium in his diet atm but that's mostly due to the fluid restrictions so they can close the PDA. So he's doing well overall and getting better each day!
S
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Zachary Update 12-03-2008
Andy said he looked good this morning and said he was awake so he got to spend some time with him. He said the baby's hands are getting bigger and can almost go all the way around his finger the baby grabbed his finger this morning (sounds cute).
Zach's respirator settings are still pretty high at 40 breaths / min but his oxygen is down some 29% so that's a good sign they'll probably decrease the respirator some later today and he'll be on his way to getting ready for CPAP again.
His weight is 2lbs 11 ounces so assuming he stays on this curve he should be 3 lbs before too long.
I'll be calling the nurses later on to see how he's doing this afternoon and probably post another update.
Baby Shower Update: The Invitations should be in the mail and we look forward to seeing our friends and family on December 14th at 12pm (Sunday). If anyone needs directions email me and I'll gladly send them.
Sarah
Zach's respirator settings are still pretty high at 40 breaths / min but his oxygen is down some 29% so that's a good sign they'll probably decrease the respirator some later today and he'll be on his way to getting ready for CPAP again.
His weight is 2lbs 11 ounces so assuming he stays on this curve he should be 3 lbs before too long.
I'll be calling the nurses later on to see how he's doing this afternoon and probably post another update.
Baby Shower Update: The Invitations should be in the mail and we look forward to seeing our friends and family on December 14th at 12pm (Sunday). If anyone needs directions email me and I'll gladly send them.
Sarah
Monday, December 1, 2008
Zach Update 12-1-2008
Well it seems Zach having a rough patch today. He's extubated for a 3rd time. I could tell something seemed up with his tube yesterday when we were there. They had to keep going up on his vent setting from the low where he was at yesterday to 45 today. That was the first sign that something wasn't right with the tube. The xrays showed it'd almost come out so right before they were about to fix it he pulled it out. So he's at 45 breaths/m with 36% oxygen atm. So he's kinda had a big setback with the ventilator one day from being taken off it. So hopefully in a week or so he'll be ready to start transitioning back to cpap again. His blood gasses after the re-intubation are much better so he's improving now the tube is back in place.
They found some fluid in his lungs probably from the PDA so they're starting him on diruetics instead of the other medicine he was on to try and close the PDA and remove the fluid from teh lungs. This is a common treatment for PDA they'll try many different things unless it becomes apparent he needs surgical intervention. Most babies don't though or not until they're 1 yr old.
He's getting more blood today. That's normal due to the amount they take for blood tests and his bones just can't make enough to replenish. He usually looks much better after they give him blood on Mondays.
He's back to having IVs in (both feet this time) for the new medicines and preventative antibiotics. They don't want the fluid in his lungs to be from an infection or get infected. If there's no infection they'll take him off the antibiotics in 2 days. Just like last week.
His weigh in today was 2lbs 10 ounces and 41 cm long. So he's gaining/growing well. He's still at 20 ml eight times a day.
The nurse said he looks good now that they're done messing with him and his vent situation is fixed. I do hope he can get on CPAP before it comes out next time. He keeps picking up his head and bending his tube completely over or pulling on it. No kidding one day we're sitting there and he just picks up his head and turns it over completely on the tube. Needless to say the vent machine starting freaking out. I can only imagine what he does when they're not looking. The nurses can't sit there and watch him 24/7.
Anyhew hopefully he does well throughout the night and tomorrow goes better.
S
They found some fluid in his lungs probably from the PDA so they're starting him on diruetics instead of the other medicine he was on to try and close the PDA and remove the fluid from teh lungs. This is a common treatment for PDA they'll try many different things unless it becomes apparent he needs surgical intervention. Most babies don't though or not until they're 1 yr old.
He's getting more blood today. That's normal due to the amount they take for blood tests and his bones just can't make enough to replenish. He usually looks much better after they give him blood on Mondays.
He's back to having IVs in (both feet this time) for the new medicines and preventative antibiotics. They don't want the fluid in his lungs to be from an infection or get infected. If there's no infection they'll take him off the antibiotics in 2 days. Just like last week.
His weigh in today was 2lbs 10 ounces and 41 cm long. So he's gaining/growing well. He's still at 20 ml eight times a day.
The nurse said he looks good now that they're done messing with him and his vent situation is fixed. I do hope he can get on CPAP before it comes out next time. He keeps picking up his head and bending his tube completely over or pulling on it. No kidding one day we're sitting there and he just picks up his head and turns it over completely on the tube. Needless to say the vent machine starting freaking out. I can only imagine what he does when they're not looking. The nurses can't sit there and watch him 24/7.
Anyhew hopefully he does well throughout the night and tomorrow goes better.
S
Zachary's Baby Shower
It's official the baby shower will be on December 14th, 2008 at 12pm noon at my house. We look forward to hosting the shower and seeing our friends and family that can attend.
We're registered at Target and Baby's R Us and thank all in advance who think of us during this time.
We'll have finger foods and good fun during the shower.
S
We're registered at Target and Baby's R Us and thank all in advance who think of us during this time.
We'll have finger foods and good fun during the shower.
S
Zachary Update 11-30-2008
Well Zach looked well today. They've decreased his vent settings to the lowest they make them before they move them off the ventilator and to cpap. They anticipate that if his blood gas labwork comes back well several times in a row they'll move him off in the next few days. That's a good sign as he hates that tube and is constantly trying to get rid of it.
I guess they'll keep him on the tube feedings but that tube is much smaller and less invasive. I don't think his sucking ability is matured yet he's still too little only 31 weeks gestation. Perhaps in a few weeks they'll try him eating from bottles but I have a feeling it's going to be a while.
His weight seems pretty stable at 2 lbs 9 oz his official weekly weight will be taken tomorrow. I'll ask for his lenght too he's growing pretty well and went up a diaper size.
So overall he's doing pretty well hopefully this stays this way.
S
I guess they'll keep him on the tube feedings but that tube is much smaller and less invasive. I don't think his sucking ability is matured yet he's still too little only 31 weeks gestation. Perhaps in a few weeks they'll try him eating from bottles but I have a feeling it's going to be a while.
His weight seems pretty stable at 2 lbs 9 oz his official weekly weight will be taken tomorrow. I'll ask for his lenght too he's growing pretty well and went up a diaper size.
So overall he's doing pretty well hopefully this stays this way.
S
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Zachary Update 11-28-2008
Friday we went to see Zachary (well I went too) and got to do Kangaroo care again this time with much better results. Probably held him for 2-3 hours by then I was pretty tired (trying to make sure he didn't move so his tube wasn't out of place). He kept wiggling down lol and would not stay and I had to hold his tube after a while so it'd be aligned. Zach seemed happy enough but kept having gas (lol) and with each episode his stats would go down then he'd go back to normal. I thought for sure his diaper would be full by the end.. nope lol.
He's up to 2 lbs 9 ounces. He's gained quite a bit of weight over last week becuase at the beginning he was at 2 lbs 4 ounces. This is a great sign he's starting to catch up.
His pulmonary artery still has the hole in it (all babies have this and it usually closes by full-term gestation) we've still got a month or 2 to go before we need to worry about it not closing and surgery would be needed. There's a few more things they can try to make it close up. Hopefully that'll work or it'll close on its own and surgery won't be needed.
They went up on his feeds again so he's up to 19ccs eight times a day. So hopefully he'll keep gaining well and getting better and better. His oxygen has been in the 30s mostly and hopefully it'll get back down to the 20s like it'd been for a while. They've been able to tone down the respirator settings a bit (breaths per second) back to where they were so that's a good sign. When he's able to stay at 20s for a week or so they'll start trying to transition him again for the cpap that'll also help his pulmonary artery close.
So he's been doing pretty well and he seems to really like the kangaroo care. 3 hours is a bit too much for that :P but 1-2 hours is pretty nice.
New photos uploaded from our Thanksgiving visit with him be sure to check the flickr slideshow.
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!
S
He's up to 2 lbs 9 ounces. He's gained quite a bit of weight over last week becuase at the beginning he was at 2 lbs 4 ounces. This is a great sign he's starting to catch up.
His pulmonary artery still has the hole in it (all babies have this and it usually closes by full-term gestation) we've still got a month or 2 to go before we need to worry about it not closing and surgery would be needed. There's a few more things they can try to make it close up. Hopefully that'll work or it'll close on its own and surgery won't be needed.
They went up on his feeds again so he's up to 19ccs eight times a day. So hopefully he'll keep gaining well and getting better and better. His oxygen has been in the 30s mostly and hopefully it'll get back down to the 20s like it'd been for a while. They've been able to tone down the respirator settings a bit (breaths per second) back to where they were so that's a good sign. When he's able to stay at 20s for a week or so they'll start trying to transition him again for the cpap that'll also help his pulmonary artery close.
So he's been doing pretty well and he seems to really like the kangaroo care. 3 hours is a bit too much for that :P but 1-2 hours is pretty nice.
New photos uploaded from our Thanksgiving visit with him be sure to check the flickr slideshow.
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!
S
Friday, November 28, 2008
Zach update 11-28-2008 (Turkey Day)
Well we went early today to go see Zach so we could get back and finish up items for dinner. He looked good today he was pushing up on his legs and arms and nearly could pick up his neck. He was really trying at least. The nurses said that was a good sign that he was trying to get up like he is. As he gets more weight on him his muscles won't be able to support his weight like most full-term babies who cannot do much with their bodies. For now though he's got the strength to push off.
He's pretty adamant about how he wants to lay as well and if the nurses move him a certain way he doesn't like he does all he can to move into a different position.
His oxygen has gone up and down but hovers around 30% he was down to 20 for the past few weeks but probably due to his extubation ordeal it'll take him a few more days to get back to where he was. They also went up on the breaths they give him, they'd been trying to go down on the respirator settings to see if he's ready for CPAP. So that's been delayed a bit but nothing out of the ordinary.
So all in all he looks good today :)
S
He's pretty adamant about how he wants to lay as well and if the nurses move him a certain way he doesn't like he does all he can to move into a different position.
His oxygen has gone up and down but hovers around 30% he was down to 20 for the past few weeks but probably due to his extubation ordeal it'll take him a few more days to get back to where he was. They also went up on the breaths they give him, they'd been trying to go down on the respirator settings to see if he's ready for CPAP. So that's been delayed a bit but nothing out of the ordinary.
So all in all he looks good today :)
S
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Second Update for 11/25/2008
Well we got back late from the NICU visit since I had talked to the nurses and they felt Zachary was good for Kangaroo care today. I had Andy come pick me up instead of going straight there after work.
Well it took the poor nurse 10+ mins to unhook/move all his wires/tubes etc so I felt kinda bad about that. Once she got him on my chest his stats all normalized and he seemed as happy as he could be. His stats were all over the place when we arrived as he was awake and just moving a lot. So I was happy to see that while holding him the Kangaroo Care seemed to be doing well.
After about 30 mins the nurse said she needed to feed him and check his ventilator tube becuase the monitor was showing some leaking. Same thing happened a few Sundays back and his tube extubated and had to be reput in (a rather traumatic experience). Well sure enough as soon as she got him back in the incubator his tube had come out. Zach had a lot of bubbles, saliva etc coming up when I was holding him but his O2 saturation etc was good so I didn't think much of it. Apparently, when they start having a lot of saliva, bubbles etc come up that usually means the tube is starting to come out (the bubbles push it out of the lungs).
So in a rush the on-call doctor/nurse practitioner etc came in and re-intubated him while one of them was using the bag/mask to give him air. After they got the new tube in and all situated he looked drained and tired (as one would expect). Then after about 5 mins he was wide awake and just doing all kinds of normal looking around, hand moving, tongue sticking out, leg kicking etc. He was staring a lot at his ventilator tubing and going crosseyed trying to look at it as it was right above his face, that was kind of funny. I had him track my finger in front of his face to see if he was really able to see the objects or was just looking blinding into the area. Sure enough he'd follow my finger when I placed that close enough to his face. I'm sure that's a good sign.
So although he extubated his vent tube .. again o.O and the Kangaroo care holding got cut short he seems to be doing fine. Even after scaring the doctors a bit tonight. They get really antsy when the tubes come out and they have to do some emergency procedures to get a new one in. I waited a while until they did the x-ray to make sure the tubes were in the right spots and they were. After they started the feedings and put him on his stomach (his preferred position) he started going to sleep that's when we left. I just didn't want to leave until we knew everything was good with him and he was settled for the night.
For those unaware with what Kangaroo care is and the benefits here's a link:
Wiki Kangaro Care Definition
Although I wouldn't say moving Zachary was the greatest idea today there was no way to know that his tube was nearly about to extubate. The nurses won't let or suggest Kangaroo care unless they really think the baby is doing well and ready. Better we find out about the tube when everyone is watching him than it to happen and the nurse be busy doing something else and not realizing it right away. So in a way perhaps it was a good thing to catch it when we did. Also, the skin-to-skin contact benefits for Zach far outweigh the risks I only wish we could have started it sooner as close contact helps premies so much!
S
Well it took the poor nurse 10+ mins to unhook/move all his wires/tubes etc so I felt kinda bad about that. Once she got him on my chest his stats all normalized and he seemed as happy as he could be. His stats were all over the place when we arrived as he was awake and just moving a lot. So I was happy to see that while holding him the Kangaroo Care seemed to be doing well.
After about 30 mins the nurse said she needed to feed him and check his ventilator tube becuase the monitor was showing some leaking. Same thing happened a few Sundays back and his tube extubated and had to be reput in (a rather traumatic experience). Well sure enough as soon as she got him back in the incubator his tube had come out. Zach had a lot of bubbles, saliva etc coming up when I was holding him but his O2 saturation etc was good so I didn't think much of it. Apparently, when they start having a lot of saliva, bubbles etc come up that usually means the tube is starting to come out (the bubbles push it out of the lungs).
So in a rush the on-call doctor/nurse practitioner etc came in and re-intubated him while one of them was using the bag/mask to give him air. After they got the new tube in and all situated he looked drained and tired (as one would expect). Then after about 5 mins he was wide awake and just doing all kinds of normal looking around, hand moving, tongue sticking out, leg kicking etc. He was staring a lot at his ventilator tubing and going crosseyed trying to look at it as it was right above his face, that was kind of funny. I had him track my finger in front of his face to see if he was really able to see the objects or was just looking blinding into the area. Sure enough he'd follow my finger when I placed that close enough to his face. I'm sure that's a good sign.
So although he extubated his vent tube .. again o.O and the Kangaroo care holding got cut short he seems to be doing fine. Even after scaring the doctors a bit tonight. They get really antsy when the tubes come out and they have to do some emergency procedures to get a new one in. I waited a while until they did the x-ray to make sure the tubes were in the right spots and they were. After they started the feedings and put him on his stomach (his preferred position) he started going to sleep that's when we left. I just didn't want to leave until we knew everything was good with him and he was settled for the night.
For those unaware with what Kangaroo care is and the benefits here's a link:
Wiki Kangaro Care Definition
Although I wouldn't say moving Zachary was the greatest idea today there was no way to know that his tube was nearly about to extubate. The nurses won't let or suggest Kangaroo care unless they really think the baby is doing well and ready. Better we find out about the tube when everyone is watching him than it to happen and the nurse be busy doing something else and not realizing it right away. So in a way perhaps it was a good thing to catch it when we did. Also, the skin-to-skin contact benefits for Zach far outweigh the risks I only wish we could have started it sooner as close contact helps premies so much!
S
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Zachary Update 11-25-2008
Hi all I just got off the phone with his nurse. He's had a good day so far they've started caffeine to get him ready for slow changes with the ultimate goal of going to cpap and taking out the respirator tube.
They've stopped antibiotics as they could not find an infection in his lungs or body. They thought he had pneumonia but he doesn't woot. They'll be taking the IV out of his arm when he wakes up and said we can do kangaroo care today if we wished. That'd be the first time we'd held him yet. I've gone with the hopes of being able to do so but every time he's either under the Jaundice lights or has a new IV or isn't doing well enough for it. Today would be the first time everything was going well enough to allow it.
They've added a bean bag arm/hand and he seems to like that they say he's sleeping much better with it. Thought that was cute and very nice of the nurses to request for him.
His weight is 2 lbs 4 ounces so he's gaining well. Overall this is probably the longest stretch so far of "good days" he's had. Hopefully this will keep up. They've stayed with the same 18 ccs(ml) x every 3 hours for feeds so that didn't go up.
So he's doing well at the moment we'll probably have new photos up on the flickr slideshow tonight or tomorrow so keep checking back.
S
They've stopped antibiotics as they could not find an infection in his lungs or body. They thought he had pneumonia but he doesn't woot. They'll be taking the IV out of his arm when he wakes up and said we can do kangaroo care today if we wished. That'd be the first time we'd held him yet. I've gone with the hopes of being able to do so but every time he's either under the Jaundice lights or has a new IV or isn't doing well enough for it. Today would be the first time everything was going well enough to allow it.
They've added a bean bag arm/hand and he seems to like that they say he's sleeping much better with it. Thought that was cute and very nice of the nurses to request for him.
His weight is 2 lbs 4 ounces so he's gaining well. Overall this is probably the longest stretch so far of "good days" he's had. Hopefully this will keep up. They've stayed with the same 18 ccs(ml) x every 3 hours for feeds so that didn't go up.
So he's doing well at the moment we'll probably have new photos up on the flickr slideshow tonight or tomorrow so keep checking back.
S
Monday, November 24, 2008
Zach Update 11-24-2008
Current weight is a bit more than 2lbs 4 ounces (probably more like 2 lb 6oz.
He's more than 14 inches long now.
Talked to the NICU this afternoon and some promising information. Some of you may or may not know he'd been fighting some lung issues the last few days and they've taken xrays etc and his lungs are still looking good so they thought maybe there was an infection. So far the cultures have come back without anything growing. He's had a lot of need for suction last few days so they sent off cultures. Thankfully so far nothing is showing up but they said it still could but if it does it's probably a minor infection. They do have him on antibiotics because of a suspected infection. He had a bought of jaundice again last week and that can be caused by an infection. He's no longer under the lights but does have the IV back in his arm now.
They've lowered his oxygen again (this is a good thing less is better) and they're starting the transition to lower the need on the respirator. Perhaps in a few days he may be on CPAP instead of a respirator. Hopefully this time when they try it he can actually take it. Last time he was in really bad shape when they tried of course he was just a few days old last time. They said they never can tell when they're exactly ready other than less of a need for oxygen and lower levels on the respirator. 20% oxygen is usually when thye start trying the CPAP, we breathe about 21% so usually when they get that low they're ready to start using their lungs on their own.
They've got his feeds up to 18ccs x 8 x per day at this time. That's about 144 ccs (ml) per day. The nurse said they may up them a bit more tomorrow. They're trying to get him to gain a bit more weight but he's nearly to the normal (mid line) range for weight for his gestational age. They're currently adding more calories to the breast milk to help that process along. He's definately filling out nicely as you can see from the photos taken every few days.
I'll review a bit of the past few weeks since I just started the blog today.
Zachary Ian was born on 11/04/2008 around 2100hr.
He weighed 1lb 13 oz or 821 grams. He was 13.72 inches long.
He was measuring at 27 weeks gestational this is what they measure premies by. You always go by gestational age even after they get home so you have the proper developmental milestone age. Take the original due date which was Feb 1st and minus the weeks off between that and when he was born from his age so we know where developmentally he is at.
So by tomorrow he'll be 30 weeks gestational. Most babies would still be in the womb for another 8-10 weeks. So he's got a bit to go but he's looking cuter and cuter every day.
So far he's been under light therapy about 3 times for jaundice. He's been on antibotics 3-4 times which is pretty good considering some preemies are on them nearly all the time in the NICU. I finally got all the nurses/head nurse etc on board with the fresh breast milk. We take it daily so he can get my immune system. One of the first things to go when you freeze breast milk is the antibodies which a preemie needs desperately. Preemies don't get the mother's immune system in the womb so they rely on the breastmilk completely. I believe that's one reason he's not needed much for antibiotics which I'm thankful. I'm sure after a few weeks it'll be even better and he'll be sick even less.
I've still not been able to do kangaroo care (that's chest to chest holding for an hour). He's either been under the lights or had IV's or not been feeling well enough. However, we've been able to rub his back and he loves his back rubbed and to lay on his stomach. They say it helps preemies to have back massages so we've been focusing on that he does seem to breathe better and get relaxed while we're doing it. He even arches his back /tries to move on his side/stomach so we rub it if we stop. It's cute that even at this age they know what they like and will move so you can keep doing it lol.
The nurses say soon he'll be able to see black and white he already looks around a lot when you talk to him he's just a lot easier to touch etc while he's sleeping. He's got a great grip on his right hand it's very strong however his left is a bit weak. I definately didn't expect that difference. With my daughter both her hands were pretty strong of course she was born 2 weeks overdue.
Well that's all I can think of to update past and present.
He's more than 14 inches long now.
Talked to the NICU this afternoon and some promising information. Some of you may or may not know he'd been fighting some lung issues the last few days and they've taken xrays etc and his lungs are still looking good so they thought maybe there was an infection. So far the cultures have come back without anything growing. He's had a lot of need for suction last few days so they sent off cultures. Thankfully so far nothing is showing up but they said it still could but if it does it's probably a minor infection. They do have him on antibiotics because of a suspected infection. He had a bought of jaundice again last week and that can be caused by an infection. He's no longer under the lights but does have the IV back in his arm now.
They've lowered his oxygen again (this is a good thing less is better) and they're starting the transition to lower the need on the respirator. Perhaps in a few days he may be on CPAP instead of a respirator. Hopefully this time when they try it he can actually take it. Last time he was in really bad shape when they tried of course he was just a few days old last time. They said they never can tell when they're exactly ready other than less of a need for oxygen and lower levels on the respirator. 20% oxygen is usually when thye start trying the CPAP, we breathe about 21% so usually when they get that low they're ready to start using their lungs on their own.
They've got his feeds up to 18ccs x 8 x per day at this time. That's about 144 ccs (ml) per day. The nurse said they may up them a bit more tomorrow. They're trying to get him to gain a bit more weight but he's nearly to the normal (mid line) range for weight for his gestational age. They're currently adding more calories to the breast milk to help that process along. He's definately filling out nicely as you can see from the photos taken every few days.
I'll review a bit of the past few weeks since I just started the blog today.
Zachary Ian was born on 11/04/2008 around 2100hr.
He weighed 1lb 13 oz or 821 grams. He was 13.72 inches long.
He was measuring at 27 weeks gestational this is what they measure premies by. You always go by gestational age even after they get home so you have the proper developmental milestone age. Take the original due date which was Feb 1st and minus the weeks off between that and when he was born from his age so we know where developmentally he is at.
So by tomorrow he'll be 30 weeks gestational. Most babies would still be in the womb for another 8-10 weeks. So he's got a bit to go but he's looking cuter and cuter every day.
So far he's been under light therapy about 3 times for jaundice. He's been on antibotics 3-4 times which is pretty good considering some preemies are on them nearly all the time in the NICU. I finally got all the nurses/head nurse etc on board with the fresh breast milk. We take it daily so he can get my immune system. One of the first things to go when you freeze breast milk is the antibodies which a preemie needs desperately. Preemies don't get the mother's immune system in the womb so they rely on the breastmilk completely. I believe that's one reason he's not needed much for antibiotics which I'm thankful. I'm sure after a few weeks it'll be even better and he'll be sick even less.
I've still not been able to do kangaroo care (that's chest to chest holding for an hour). He's either been under the lights or had IV's or not been feeling well enough. However, we've been able to rub his back and he loves his back rubbed and to lay on his stomach. They say it helps preemies to have back massages so we've been focusing on that he does seem to breathe better and get relaxed while we're doing it. He even arches his back /tries to move on his side/stomach so we rub it if we stop. It's cute that even at this age they know what they like and will move so you can keep doing it lol.
The nurses say soon he'll be able to see black and white he already looks around a lot when you talk to him he's just a lot easier to touch etc while he's sleeping. He's got a great grip on his right hand it's very strong however his left is a bit weak. I definately didn't expect that difference. With my daughter both her hands were pretty strong of course she was born 2 weeks overdue.
Well that's all I can think of to update past and present.
Welcome to Zach's Blog
Well I figure this is going to be easier than saying the same thing over and over to the many people tracking Zach's progress. We love all the prayers and thoughts as we do need them at this time, keeping up with all the emails is getting difficult while trying to rest and get better.
Remember we're always adding more photos to the flickr slideshow. So if you want to see the latest photos please click here: Zachary Slideshow on Flickr
Enjoy and feel free to email us if you'd like more info!
S
Remember we're always adding more photos to the flickr slideshow. So if you want to see the latest photos please click here: Zachary Slideshow on Flickr
Enjoy and feel free to email us if you'd like more info!
S
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