This past week has been quite interesting. The good news is that Savannah is doing quite well. The bad news is that Savannah has another surgical procedure scheduled in May.
Our first appointment on Thursday was with an ears, nose, and throat (ENT) doctor – it’s easier to write than Otolaryngologist. When Savannah was intubated for her heart catheterization back in January, the anesthesiologist had to use a smaller than expected tube to get the tube in past her vocal cords. With Savannah’s many birth defects, it’s possible that she has a potentially fatal narrowing of her trachea. While she’s breathing just fine now, this could change if there’s complete tracheal rings or significant tracheal stenosis. The procedure scheduled for May will be a short scope to take a look down her throat to see what is or isn’t there. Please join us in praying that they find nothing!
The second appointment of the day was with Savannah’s immunologist. Outside of a short physical examination of sissy, this was a nice long Q & A session. She had a lot of questions for us, and we had a lot of questions for her. Most notable, she is developing a fever plan for Savannah. This will be a written letter that instructs us and any physician as to what to do if Savannah spikes of fever. She also ordered several blood tests to evaluate Savannah’s spleen function and overall immune system. They will do the blood draw when we take her back in May.
Our final appointment was with cardiology. We met her cardiologist and the home monitoring program nurse. They had not seen her since she was just 2 weeks old. They were extremely pleased with the way she looked and how well she was doing over all. We asked a lot of questions and got validation that we are on the right path towards Boston. They did go ahead and order an echo while Savannah will be sedated for the other procedure. This will let her team get much better and clearer images. Lastly, we were also able see the nutritionist in the Heart Center to talk about some of her feeding issues. They gave us some pointers and ideas.
Overall, all three appointments went extremely well. It was also extremely nice to see the Dishions again. You are our Cincinnati home away from home, and we love you so much! All in all, we simply wish that Savannah didn’t need to have another surgical procedure. Your thoughts and prayers for her upcoming surgery are greatly appreciated.
In the coming weeks, her cardiology team will be making the decision about our trip to Boston in June. There’s a good possibility that the trip will be delayed, but we don’t want to postpone the trip if she really needs to be there. Please pray that the right decision is made.