Annie day 5

Hi all: We are feeling pretty positive right now about how things are going--that's the bottom line up front. Today was a big day of tests and results. Earlier this morning Annie had an MRI to check for brain function and possible centrally caused apnea (neurological apnea). In preparation for the MRI Annie had to have some morphine and adevan (for anxiety) and specifically prepared breathing support (vent) for the 30 minute test. The results from the test show absolutely no problems--this is very happy news! Notice the beautiful picture here of Annie's brain--you can see all the parts and that they are healthy. We also got the results back from the PH study....drum roll...the findings: reflux is not really a factor here. The test results show that just a small handful of her breathing episodes coincided with acidic reflux. Most of the time, however, the episodes just happened--independent fromt acid reflux. The test did show that zantec (reflux medication) did eliminate the acid reflux, so Annie will remain on that med for a short period of time.

The attending doc spoke with us several times today, and one other test she proposed was a spinal tap to check for possible meningitis. They were slightly concerned about this being a possibility because of how quickly her fever and lung congestion spiked over the night. This was of course scary to hear that this might be a diagnosis! So, they did the spinal tap--which was sort of traumatic in and of itself watching a big needle being inserted into her lower back! It was also fascinating to watch the resident who did it, who was also training a medical student how to do it. I was glad the resident did it instead of the student. After they did it I asked them how it was for them to do such a procedure...do they ever feel nervous? Yes! The resident said she did feel nervous at first but now that she's done so many she doesn't anymore. Although, it did seem like I saw her hand shaking as she was capturing the spinal fluid droplets into her vial. We are all humans here right? I think I'd be nervous too. So, the spinal fluid came back clear and no signs indicating high white blood cell counts (hinting at meningitis). In fact, Annie only had 2 white blood cells in her fluid. Good news.

Annie also had another chest Xray today which revealed that the fluid in her lungs is still there, but it has now moved around and is diffusing a bit and breaking up. The team suggests it will get even clearer once she's off the vent.

So, for now Annie is resting and riding happily on the ventilator. We are hoping to wean her off the vent very soon and then introduce feedings again. The feedings at that point will be dairy free to see if that might help with things. As far as the weaning is concerned, Annie seems SO tired and is enjoying the break from breathing on her own right now. The hope is that as her cold virus passes and she gets rest she'll have more energy to begin breathing on her own again.

So here's what we'ver learned: reflux is not the primary cause, there is not a clear neurological problem, she has an infection and had a fever--but now has her temp under control, the cause may be age related (still a premie baby), it could be allergy related, and she's going to be here for a bit more. More to follow!