Medical update for Monday, the 20th at 9:07pm: Yesterday at noon, Leslies right lung collapsed as a result of the lengthy exposure to an extremely high level of positive air pressure applied by the ventilator to assist in her absorption of oxygen into her bloodstream. They inserted a chest tube via the standard method used in most cases. That means they basically punched the tube itself through to a spot lungish location so it could alleviate the air pressure built up outside her lung (that air pressure being the force which caused the lung to collapse). Once inserted, they check its placement with an X-ray to make sure its where it should be, as opposed to checking the placement as they insert the tube in the first place. Today her lung is PARTIALLY inflated but not as much as we hoped it would be when the tube was put in. The continued buildup of pressure around her lung is NOT collapsing it again, but its outpacing the effectiveness of the tube she has in place. This is both because of that tube having migrated a little bit since insertion (its a straw having air continually blown through it, so movement over time is certainly not uncommon) and because the positive pressure holding her lungs open far enough for optimal oxygenation is leaking out in small amounts to build up around the outside in the way that happened when her lung collapsed initially. To solve the problem, a new tube is being placed as soon as the thoracic surgeon becomes available. This time it will be a tube with a larger diameter (wider tube means more air can be released through it) and it will be done by means of an open incision. Thats different from the first chest tubes insertion because rather than using the tube to poke its own hole, theyll make an incision then put the tube into it, thereby allowing for more accurate placement since the incision allows the doctor to see precisely where to place the tube as its happening instead of just checking afterward to see if it went in the right spot. There arent any complications anticipated, but that certainly doesnt mean theres any guarantee of success or safety. It only means that the odds are heavily in favor if it going smoothly and successfully alleviating the pressure at a rate high enough to keep the buildup from pushing the lung closed again. The procedure itself should take just about 20-30 minutes, but were still waiting for the surgeon to be available before it can begin. Since the first tube is keeping the lung partially inflated and shes holding steady, it isnt an emergency of the kind where they would hurry her to the front of the line, hence the waiting part. Ill definitely let it be known how she fares through the new tube insertion as soon as its finished and I find out exactly how well it went. Additionally, she has developed a couple small blood clots in her legs. This is also something extremely common in this sort of convalescence. There is always the possibility of her throwing one of those clots which could then lodge in any number of very dangerous locations causing a stroke or other serious problem. However, the two clots are both small and the doctors are confident that neither is likely to be thrown elsewhere before being dealt with. Since she is soon to have a chest tube inserted, blood thinners cant be administered at this time. As soon as she has the tube in, theyll put her on a blood thinner to break up those two clots. Given the nature of the clots, the expectation is that the blood thinner should be plenty to dissolve them safely without requiring further measures of any sort. Again, that definitely doesnt mean shes guaranteed to be fine, but it does mean that the odds are in favor of a positive outcome. That can certainly change at any moment - shes still in an extremely precarious, critical condition - but even with the clots and the need for another attempt at relieving the lung-collapsing pressure, the medical team is still optimistic about the likelihood of continuing improvement. As always, of course, I certainly remain optimistic and confident that the current issues will be fixable and her overall status will continue to stabilize further, as do the rest of the family. Things are still far from safe or stable, but its all still well within the realm of what can reasonably be expected to get better. Channel 5 news (the NBC affiliate which is on channel 10 at the hospital and I dont know what channel elsewhere in the area) here in St. Louis will be airing a story about Leslie tonight during their 10:00pm broadcast. For those who cant get that channel, Ive made sure that Ill be given the URL to share once its available to watch on their website. As soon as that exists and I have it, Ill share it for everyone who would like to watch it.
Posted on: Tue, 21 Jan 2014 03:06:22 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015