Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Lucky 7



Today is Briana's seventh day on the ECMO machine, and we received good news this morning. The doctors and nurses told us that this morning's echocardiogram shows that her right lung is very clear and much more expanded, and her heart sounds better. They took her off the Prostaglandin, which makes us very happy and Briana even happier, because the side effects of that drug make her feel very uncomfortable and nauseous. Because they are stopping the Prostaglandin, the arterial duct will close again, and when they do another echocardiogram, they will see how the heart is functioning, and if the improved lung helps to regulate the blood flow. We hope that it does, so the blood does not back up as it did on Sunday, and raise the pressure in her heart. She has been urinating well all night with help from the Lasix, so she is MUCH less puffy today, and looks so much better. The removal of the excess fluid also attributes to lowering her hypertension. I mention hypertension a lot, because that is the primary obstacle to her having her corrective surgery. Another thing they told us is that hopefully they will do a trial tomorrow with her "off" of ECMO. We pray that goes very well.
Briana's overall condition is still very critical, but our hearts and minds exist within the hour to hour improvements she is making. That is the only way to be. When we were deciding on a name, we both liked Briana. It is of Gaelic/Celtic origin, and it means "strong". She is definitely fulfilling that name.
Thank you to all for your support and prayers.
Jim and Angela

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