Surgery Details

So JJ’s surgery was today. We were scheduled for 7:30, but had to show up at 5:30. We woke up at 4 am and left around 4:45. We got to the hospital and checked in and pretty much waited until 7 am. JJ got a purple hosptial gown. Thought it was kind of girlie, until I noticed that other little boys had the same purple outfit. Ha! Anyhow, by the time we got to the surgery area, it was a little after 7:30. They gave JJ some oral liquid anaesthetic to relax him. We said goodbye to him a little before 8 am.

The surgery lasted an hour and a half. We met with the doctor around 10 am. He said that JJ does have a second testicle; however, it is way up in his abdomen and it isn’t falling into place because there is a large blood vessel blocking the path. He put a weight on it and told us that we will be doing a follow up in a month and a half and that he will most likely require a second surgery in six months. He did say that there will be a lot of scar tissue and that he may or may not be able to bring the testicle down into place and that it may have to end up being taken out. It is way smaller than the other one anyway.

After that, we got to go see JJ in recovery. He had a gauze on his belly button, which is wear they put the laporascope. He als has two small incisions on either side of the belly button, about an inch and a half long each. He had an IV in his arm, which was covered in a washcloth. He had an IV in his foot, too, which was attached to a splint. He was flailing away in his twilight sleep.

During the almost 3 hours in recovery, JJ never really woke up, just a couple of times opening his eyes at a time. He has this really hoarse voice that sounds like a seal barking. Thankfully, he did not have to stay over night and we were able to leave the hospital shortly before one. He threw up twice before coming home (in the car, at that!)

JJ slept the whole way home and until about 5 ish. He was running a small fever and is still somewhat cranky. He woke up and stayed on the couch with daddy. He has drank about ten ounces of clear liquid today (apple juice and pedialyte). He attempted to eat a little today, but that didn’t quite work. The few grapes he ate came back up a few hours later.

He isn’t allowed to take a real bath for a whole week and he can’t have a sponge bath until we take off his gauze in two days. He has some tylenol with codeine for pain and some ointment for his wounds. We took lots of pictures and I’ll try getting those up sometime this weekend. JJ and the rest of us need to get some rest. We are sure glad to be home!

Genetics Appointment

JJ had his genetics appointment today. We went to see Dr. Virginia Kimonis with CHOC at UCI Medical Center. The first thing they did was weigh and measure him. He is 16 lbs 13 oz and 27 inches long. We went in and discussed the baby’s personal medical history, as well as the medical history of both sides of the family. She then did a physical which was really in depth. She took measurements of the distance between his eyes, the length of the bridge of his nose, how long his ears were and how long his fingers were. She also did his reflexes. She told us that usually when there is one genetic anomaly by itself, it’s usually not a cause for concern. However, when there are more than one occuring together, it sometimes is part of a genetic syndrome. There are three major anomalies: kyphoscoliosis, undescended testicle, and ptosis. The minor anomalies that she was slightly concerned about were his small nose, sticking out ears, one ear slightly bigger than the other, thin upper lip, and sticking out tongue. The sticking out ears and thin upper lip are both family traits.

Anyhow, she wanted to do some blood tests that would give us the same types of results as a chromosomal analysis would. We couldn’t get the tests done today because one of them required an authorization from the insurance so we will go back in a couple of weeks to get that done. We will be going back in February to discuss the results of the blood tests as well as the results from the data she took. So….we’ll see. She wasn’t so concerned because he is meeting all of his developmental milestones so well and he doesn’t have anything obvious. Updates to follow.

VBAC

So lately I’ve been thinking of how I want to deliver my next child….no, no, no. Don’t worry. I’m not pregnant and I don’t plan on being that way for at least a couple of years. Anyhow, I would like to be given the opportunity to have a vaginal birth. Having a C-section was not in my plans initially. I felt as if I was not even given the opportunity to try. I mean, after all, I was only allowed to push for like 10 minutes before the decision was made for me.  I have already thought it out. I will only have a C-section under medically necessary conditions OR if my baby does not come after two full weeks being overdue. I definitely do not want to be induced again. After all, that wasn’t all that successful now was it?

For those of you who don’t know, VBAC stands for Vaginal Birth After Cesaraean. Many hospitals have VBAC bans and many doctors will refuse to deliver a baby VBAC. After much of my research, the risks of VBAC are virtually identical to the risks of a repeat Cesearean.  There is a slight chance of uterine rupture, but that depends on many factors. Also, induction more than doubles that risk.

I did some research. There are 14 hospitals in Riverside County. Only 1 has a VBAC rate equal to or higher than the national average and that is Kaiser. Community and Parkview have VBAC rates of less than 2%. Out of 47 hospitals in Orange and San Bernardino county, only 9 have VBAC rates equal to or higher than the national average. Besides Kaiser, they are mostly big name hospitals like UCI Medical Center, Loma Linda, and St. Jude. It looks like I’ll either have to change doctors and hospitals or change insurances if I want to have a VBAC. I at least want the opportunity to experience childbirth the way it was meant to be experienced. Then I won’t feel so bad if I do have to end up having a C-section.

Six month check-up

We had our 6 month check up today and everything went well. It was so nice to go to the doctor for a well baby checkup and not for him being sick. Our first few months we were there all the time it seemed like. Here’s the stats: 15 lbs 14 oz (25th percentile), 26 1/4 inches (50th percentile), 44 cm head circumference (50th percentile). That’s up from 14 lbs, 25 1/2 inches and 42 cm at his 4 month check-up.  Lungs, ears, nose, and eyes all looked good. I told the doctor about what the orthopedic surgeon had told us (since they hadn’t informed the doctor). The doctor said he could give us a referral for CHOC for the geneticist. So it looks like as long as we can get the medical records sent over in time, we’ll have our December appointment. He got his vaccinations and only cried when they first gave them to him. By the time the Band-aids were on, he was all better. He also got his flu shot and some shiny metallic band-aids. I love my little trooper!

A fairly uneventful 2 months

So with all the medical drama we’ve had in JJ’s first few months, I’m happy to say that we haven’t been to the doctor in almost 6 weeks! Well, not counting the specialist appointment last month. We’ve had no issues requiring us to go see the doctor or have tests run or go to the hospital. Granted, little man has been congested for a couple of weeks and he had a bad diaper rash for about a week, but nothing requiring medical intervention thank God! He’s been doing so well and learning so many new things. He can now pretty much sit on his own. He can also get up on all fours and rock back and forth. Occassionally, he will move his legs in this position, but hasn’t quite figured out how to move his arms. He also gets up on his hands and toes and sticks his little booty up in the air. It’s quite cute. He’s quite the hit at parties. All the ladies love him and want to take him home. Today at Olive Garden, every time a waitress passed by our table, she would smile at him, talk to him, or play with his feet. He’s such a ladies man and getting cuter every day. Here’s a picture of him taken yesterday.

Opthamologist Follow-up

So today we went for the opthamologist follow-up. I was fully expecting to be there a good 4 hours or so as that’s how it went last time. However, something weird happened. I parked right in front of the office. Then, I walked in and hardly anybody was there. Three patients to be exact. Last time we were there the waiting room was packed. Standing room only. Maybe this would be a decent visit after all. So we checked in, paid our co-pay and waited. The other 3 people went in quickly and so did we. We were darn near done with our visit by 20 minutes after our appointment was scheduled. Hey, I wondered, maybe they finally got things under control instead of wasting everyone’s day at the office. Anyhow, they dilated his eyes and said they’d call us back in 30 minutes. No big deal. That would still be a full 3 hours quicker than our last visit. Meanwhile, the office starts filling up. Uh-oh. Forty-five minutes later I ask the receptionist why we haven’t been called back. They’re waiting on a room for you, she says. Well, that can’t be. I’ve seen numerous people go in there so I know there’s rooms. Anyways, fifteen minutes after that, I’m starting to get fed up and when the door opens to call another patient in, I ask that girl and get the same response. This time I actually say out loud what I was thinking before. Funny, we were the next ones in. Everything looks good. His Ptosis (droopy eye) is better, it’s not affecting his vision and there is no neurological damage or issues to be concerned with. We’ll be coming back in 9 months for a follow-up. So two hours after we got there, we’re leaving. Finally. Could’ve had a 20 minute visit without the dilation. I should’ve known better though. Oh well. At least I have a healthy boy to show for it.

Geneticist Appointment

So more than one medical professional has recommended that we get the baby to at least have a consult with a geneticist. I was recommended to see a geneticist at CHOC, so I looked up to see if any were covered by my insurance and sure enough there were. There is an appointment set for Dec. 11 unofficially. I say unofficially because even though we have Open Access Insurance, which means we are able to get into any specialist without a referral, the geneticists at CHOC all require a referral. I hope our pediatrician is willing to do that for us. If not, I’ll make an appointment with his other pediatrician. I’d just like to go to see if all of these little issues the baby is having is due to something else–like if it’s all part of a bigger picture. My little guy is so beautiful and happy and so outwardly healthy; I just want to make sure he’s healthy all the way through.

Congenital Kyphoscoliosis

What a name, huh? That’s the official diagnosis from the specialist. We went to the pediatric orthopedic surgeon. We had xrays of the baby’s back taken from a laying down position and a side laying position. He did so good. Even with all the prodding and pushing both of the doctor’s did, he didn’t have any issues for the first 1 1/2 hours we were there.

Kyphoscoliosis is a combination of kyphosis and scoliosis. Both of them are curvatures of the spine, but on different planes. Congenital means present at birth. Kyphosis is more serious than the scoliosis is. The doctor told us that 1/3 of these cases never progress or require any treatment. 1/3 of them progress really slow and generally don’t require treatment either. Then there’s the other 1/3 which progresses quicker and requires treatment, either through bracing or surgery.

The doctor said he didn’t think JJ would have issues walking, that he should probably meet or exceed his developmental milestones easily. Another thing is that he is missing 4 ribs on his left side. His current treatment is simply going to be observation. We’ll go back in 6 months or so and see if it has changed.

The Laundry List

I’m doing this post more as a reminder to myself than for anyone else, but I’m trying to keep track of all of the little ailments/issues JJ has had. I’m going to try my best and put them in chronological order from earliest to most recent. Here goes…

Jaundice, tummy bulge (hernia), suspected thrush, suspected eye issues, digestive problems (AKA: something doesn’t look quite right in my diaper), throat infection, urinary tract infection, chronic congestion and eye rubbing, dairy allergy/intolerance, lump on back (suspected scoliosis).

Here are the procedures he’s had done in his short life: Kidney ultrasound at birth, urine tests, blood tests, RSV test (AKA: the snot test), IV insertion, bladder x-ray, attempted catheterization/VCUG, 2nd kidney ultrasound, CT scan of back.

Here’s the types of doctors he’s been to (or will be going to soon): pediatrician, opthamologist, orthopedic surgeon, (geneticist?) (chiropractor?)

Wow that sure is a lot for a little guy who isn’t even 5 months old. I just hope this year is our most eventful year medically…I sure could do without all of these appointments. I’m sure JJ could too.

Another Specialist!

So we got the results back from the CT scan on the little guy. Turns out that the vertebrae of his spine is not properly formed (or not completely formed) I don’t remember exactly. The doctor said that this could be what is causing the lump in his side. Also, one side of his ribcage is shorter than the other side. So he referred us to a pediatric orthopedic surgeon in Loma Linda. Now from my aunt’s experience, I know that it can take months to get appointments at Loma Linda. There were two pediatric orthopedic doctors–one had an appointment available Dec. 11. Sheesh, what could you expect though. The other had one opening Sept. 25 and one Oct. 28. Lucky me that I should be able to get it before I start my long term sub. So we’ll be going to see the specialist Sept. 25 at 1:15 p.m. Hopefully everything turns out ok. The doctor didn’t know what the next steps would be or if/how it should be corrected. He said it could turn out to be scoliosis. Hopefully it doesn’t. I’ll keep you posted.