Surgery Update #5

Matthew is still in the tweaking stage of his recovery. His airway has narrowed this afternoon due to being placed on and off the ventilator twice in two days. They just gave him a breathing treatment and will continue to watch this closely.

His heart rate is also a little fast and they're manipulating his pain medication to get it under control. He's been on so much medication since he's been alive that it doesn't affect him as much as it would a heart healthy baby so they end up maxing out his dosages to get him comfortable and cross their fingers that he'll continue to breathe on his own. He's still in a lot of pain.

You should see his nurse. She's constantly running around tweaking medications, testing blood gases, measuring urine output and drainage tubes. These PICU nurses are sharp and work very hard to provide good care. (I wrote this just in case one of the PICU nurses reads his blog today)

His oxygen saturation is now fluctuating between the 80's and 90's. He'll probably settle into the upper 70 or lower 80 range when he comes home. He's been so blue for so long that with his increased blood flow to his head his lips now look very pink.