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Apr. 1st, 2009 11:57 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mrockwellUpdate
March 2009 Tally
Submissions: 1
Rejections: 0
Sales: 2
Total submissions for 2009: 15
Total rejections: 12
Total sales: 3
Ave. submissions/month for 2009: 5
Percent sales for 2009: 20%
Writing
Been a little busy. See below.
Everything Else
For those of you who don't already know, last Thursday at Max's first pediatrician visit, his doctor heard a fairly significant heart murmur and referred us to a pediatric cardiologist. We went on Friday to do an echocardiogram, where they saw a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD), which is basically a hole in his heart. At that point, we didn't know how bad it was -- small ones usually close on their own, but larger ones require medication and/or surgery.
Tuesday we saw the cardiologist to discuss the results.
Max has a medium VSD (4 mm), a size that might or might not close on its own. Unfortunately, it is right below the aorta, so the potential for causing further (and much more serious) damage is pretty high.
Right now, we are in a holding pattern. The cardiologist doesn't want to start any medications just yet, since Max is so young. We go back in two weeks (and every two weeks after that, for the foreseeable future), where they will do a chest x-ray and another echocardiogram and assess his breathing and weight gain. He is experiencing rapid breathing (65 breaths per minute at rest, when the normal for an infant -- awake -- is 40) and trouble nursing, which are caused by the fact that too much blood is being sent to his lungs and they aren't able to handle the extra fluid. If there is no improvement by his next visit, the cardiologist will start him on diuretics and possibly ACE inhibitors to make it easier for his heart to pump. If he isn't gaining weight well, the doctor will also want me to supplement my breast milk with a special formula mixture -- meaning I will have to pump the milk, add the mixture in, and feed him from a bottle, which is hugely disappointing to me, but I'll do whatever I need to for my baby boy. Hopefully it won't come to that, though, since he seems to be gaining well right now.
They will monitor him for a couple of months to see if there's any sign that the hole might close on its own, but because of the proximity to the aorta, they can't afford to wait as long as they normally would, and the cardiologist pretty much said we'd likely be looking at surgery at some point between 2 and 6 months. The goal right now is really just to get him stronger, so he can weather that procedure better.
So for now we wait, and pray. Your continued prayers and positive thoughts would be much appreciated.
March 2009 Tally
Submissions: 1
Rejections: 0
Sales: 2
Total submissions for 2009: 15
Total rejections: 12
Total sales: 3
Ave. submissions/month for 2009: 5
Percent sales for 2009: 20%
Writing
Been a little busy. See below.
Everything Else
For those of you who don't already know, last Thursday at Max's first pediatrician visit, his doctor heard a fairly significant heart murmur and referred us to a pediatric cardiologist. We went on Friday to do an echocardiogram, where they saw a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD), which is basically a hole in his heart. At that point, we didn't know how bad it was -- small ones usually close on their own, but larger ones require medication and/or surgery.
Tuesday we saw the cardiologist to discuss the results.
Max has a medium VSD (4 mm), a size that might or might not close on its own. Unfortunately, it is right below the aorta, so the potential for causing further (and much more serious) damage is pretty high.
Right now, we are in a holding pattern. The cardiologist doesn't want to start any medications just yet, since Max is so young. We go back in two weeks (and every two weeks after that, for the foreseeable future), where they will do a chest x-ray and another echocardiogram and assess his breathing and weight gain. He is experiencing rapid breathing (65 breaths per minute at rest, when the normal for an infant -- awake -- is 40) and trouble nursing, which are caused by the fact that too much blood is being sent to his lungs and they aren't able to handle the extra fluid. If there is no improvement by his next visit, the cardiologist will start him on diuretics and possibly ACE inhibitors to make it easier for his heart to pump. If he isn't gaining weight well, the doctor will also want me to supplement my breast milk with a special formula mixture -- meaning I will have to pump the milk, add the mixture in, and feed him from a bottle, which is hugely disappointing to me, but I'll do whatever I need to for my baby boy. Hopefully it won't come to that, though, since he seems to be gaining well right now.
They will monitor him for a couple of months to see if there's any sign that the hole might close on its own, but because of the proximity to the aorta, they can't afford to wait as long as they normally would, and the cardiologist pretty much said we'd likely be looking at surgery at some point between 2 and 6 months. The goal right now is really just to get him stronger, so he can weather that procedure better.
So for now we wait, and pray. Your continued prayers and positive thoughts would be much appreciated.
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no subject
Date: 2009-04-07 08:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-07 08:40 pm (UTC)