CJ is doing very well. He is still trying to master his feedings. Currently he takes 3/4 bottles a day which really wipes him out. They are slowly trying to increase his bottle feedings to bring him closer to his 8 bottles a day. No word on his surgery date.
Savannah had a very rough time last night and had 3 major episodes on the nasal canula. After I held her for an hour or so this morning she had another major episode and needed to be put back on C.P.A.P. The doctors have decided not to do the MRI because she is still very unstable. They actually said that they are not going to push for it anytime soon since Savannah will be in the hospital for a lot longer.
She is doing great with her weight gain and she is now at 5 lbs 3.6 ounces.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Sunday, July 6, 2008
I was shocked to see Savannah on the Nasal Canula when I arrived at the hospital today. The doctor informed me that they are getting her prepared for an MRI on Monday. They want to look at her brain a little closer to see what is going on. However, in order for her to have the MRI she must be off the C.P.A.P. They are going to see how she does on the Nasal Canula today and hope that she will be able to keep it long enough for the MRI tommorow.
Savannah weighed in tonight at 5 lbs.
CJ is doing very well and tolerating his feedings. He is still getting 3/4 bottles a day and is slowly working his way up to 8 bottles a day. The other 4 feedings are currently given through his feeding tube which goes through his nose into his little belly.
Savannah weighed in tonight at 5 lbs.
CJ is doing very well and tolerating his feedings. He is still getting 3/4 bottles a day and is slowly working his way up to 8 bottles a day. The other 4 feedings are currently given through his feeding tube which goes through his nose into his little belly.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Chuck, Ashley and I celebrated the 4th of July with the babies. I will be posting new pictures Sunday night. CJ's nurse was kind enough to bring CJ to see his sister so that we could take a picture of them together. CJ really enjoyed his visit, but Savannah seemed a little annoyed. Then again, CJ was grabbing at her and kept hitting her so I really can't blame her for not enjoying the visit.
CJ is doing very well and is being scheduled for surgery soon to correct his previous intestine surgery. If all goes well he may be coming home at the end of July. The surgeon is on vacation this coming week so we do not know the exact date of the surgery, but we anticipate it to be the week of July 14th. After surgery it will take another 10 days or so for the recovery period.
CJ weighs 4lbs 8.8 ounces
Savannah is still having her desaturation episodes which really has everyone concerned. They stopped her caffeine on Wednesday to see what kind of effect this would have on her. They also performed an EEG (Elctroencephalogram; Brain wave test)to see if she could possibly be having seizures which is causing these episodes. We did get some preliminary results on Friday which indicated that her brain is premature, but no indication of seizures. Since this test does not show everything they need to know they will probably be doing an MMR on her in the next few weeks. It is very difficult to do an MMR on someone who is on C.P.A.P which is why they have not done it thus far. We are still praying that everything is fine and that it is just taking her longer to learn how to breathe on her own. They did see something on her last head ultrasound that they will need to keep on eye on, but is typical with premature babies who had a bleed in their brain. Hopefully this too will not turn out to be anything major.
They are also try to decide whether or not to do Savannah's intestine repair surgery at this point. The originally thought was to do it before she is ready to go home. However, they also think that she would benefit sooner since it will help her grow faster. We will probably know more when the surgeon returns from vacation.
Savannah weighs 4 lbs 13.8 ounces
Thank you for your continued prayers for both of our little miracles.
CJ is doing very well and is being scheduled for surgery soon to correct his previous intestine surgery. If all goes well he may be coming home at the end of July. The surgeon is on vacation this coming week so we do not know the exact date of the surgery, but we anticipate it to be the week of July 14th. After surgery it will take another 10 days or so for the recovery period.
CJ weighs 4lbs 8.8 ounces
Savannah is still having her desaturation episodes which really has everyone concerned. They stopped her caffeine on Wednesday to see what kind of effect this would have on her. They also performed an EEG (Elctroencephalogram; Brain wave test)to see if she could possibly be having seizures which is causing these episodes. We did get some preliminary results on Friday which indicated that her brain is premature, but no indication of seizures. Since this test does not show everything they need to know they will probably be doing an MMR on her in the next few weeks. It is very difficult to do an MMR on someone who is on C.P.A.P which is why they have not done it thus far. We are still praying that everything is fine and that it is just taking her longer to learn how to breathe on her own. They did see something on her last head ultrasound that they will need to keep on eye on, but is typical with premature babies who had a bleed in their brain. Hopefully this too will not turn out to be anything major.
They are also try to decide whether or not to do Savannah's intestine repair surgery at this point. The originally thought was to do it before she is ready to go home. However, they also think that she would benefit sooner since it will help her grow faster. We will probably know more when the surgeon returns from vacation.
Savannah weighs 4 lbs 13.8 ounces
Thank you for your continued prayers for both of our little miracles.
Friday, July 4, 2008
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Not much to report today.
I held each baby for about an hour and both did very well.
CJ is continuing to do well with his bottle feedings and is up to 4 bottles a day.
CJ weighed in tonight at 4 lb. 3.9 ounces.
Savannah had a good day and did not have any major desaturations in a 24 hour period.
Savannah weighed in at 4 lbs 10.8 ounces.
I have been getting a lot of questions about some of the medical terms I have been using. I thought it may be helpful to give you the definitions of the ones that I most often use.
Bradycardia - Excessively slow heart rate. Usually transient and often associated with apnea and desaturation.
CBC (Complete Blood Count) - A blood test analyzing the number and type of white blood cells, the concentration of hemoglobin, the percentage of blood volume consisting of red blood cells (hematocrit), and the number of platelets
CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) - Used for the treatment of lung disease or breathing difficulty that is not severe enough to require an endotracheal tube and ventilator. CPAP is the application of continuously pressurized air and oxygen to the airways and lungs via small tubes placed in the nostrils or a soft mask placed over the nose. These tubes fit tighter to the nostrils than those of a nasal cannula. CPAP keeps lungs partially inflated between breaths, which makes breathing easier.
Desaturation - A drop in the blood oxygen level, generally detected by a pulse oximeter. Often associated with apnea and bradycardia.
Nasal Cannula - Short, thin tubes placed into the nostrils, through which oxygen is administered. Used in cases of mild or chronic lung disease which are not severe enough to require use of CPAP or a ventilator.
Apnea - Lack of air movement into the lungs. This can be due either to an infant not trying to take breaths (central apnea), or an obstruction of the airway causing air flow to cease despite the infant making attempts to breathe (obstructive apnea). Both the central and obstructive types of apnea are very common in premature infants. Central apnea in prematures is referred to as "apnea of prematurity", and is often treated with caffeine.
I held each baby for about an hour and both did very well.
CJ is continuing to do well with his bottle feedings and is up to 4 bottles a day.
CJ weighed in tonight at 4 lb. 3.9 ounces.
Savannah had a good day and did not have any major desaturations in a 24 hour period.
Savannah weighed in at 4 lbs 10.8 ounces.
I have been getting a lot of questions about some of the medical terms I have been using. I thought it may be helpful to give you the definitions of the ones that I most often use.
Bradycardia - Excessively slow heart rate. Usually transient and often associated with apnea and desaturation.
CBC (Complete Blood Count) - A blood test analyzing the number and type of white blood cells, the concentration of hemoglobin, the percentage of blood volume consisting of red blood cells (hematocrit), and the number of platelets
CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) - Used for the treatment of lung disease or breathing difficulty that is not severe enough to require an endotracheal tube and ventilator. CPAP is the application of continuously pressurized air and oxygen to the airways and lungs via small tubes placed in the nostrils or a soft mask placed over the nose. These tubes fit tighter to the nostrils than those of a nasal cannula. CPAP keeps lungs partially inflated between breaths, which makes breathing easier.
Desaturation - A drop in the blood oxygen level, generally detected by a pulse oximeter. Often associated with apnea and bradycardia.
Nasal Cannula - Short, thin tubes placed into the nostrils, through which oxygen is administered. Used in cases of mild or chronic lung disease which are not severe enough to require use of CPAP or a ventilator.
Apnea - Lack of air movement into the lungs. This can be due either to an infant not trying to take breaths (central apnea), or an obstruction of the airway causing air flow to cease despite the infant making attempts to breathe (obstructive apnea). Both the central and obstructive types of apnea are very common in premature infants. Central apnea in prematures is referred to as "apnea of prematurity", and is often treated with caffeine.
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