Today we are off to Yorkhill for a day appointment with the Airway team to see if Tom can cope with a smaller tracheostomy tube. Downsizing from a 4.5 to a 4 would mean his airway tube would be half a millimetre smaller - doesnt sound like a massive difference, but it could have two big impacts. Firstly if Tom copes with it, it potentially shows he is doing some of his breathing through his normal airway (nose and mouth) so there must be a passage there. This could be a step in the right direction to one day no longer needing his trache, although that would still be a long way off. The second big impact of downsizing is it means some air would be able to pass over his vocal chords.... and we might be able to hear him talk :) Tom is pretty much silent at the moment, and it can really hard seeing him laughing or shouting for attention but not making any noise.... I miss his wee giggles. The team may also try Tom with a speaking valve today which can be fitted at the end of his trache to help him speak for very short periods of the day. Although making sure Tom can breath properly is obviously the top priority, its important we try to let him hear himself making noise so he keeps doing it - without any feedback from trying to make sounds, he will likely stop trying. We will be in Yorkhill for a few hours today while the team monitor how he copes with a smaller tube by measuring his heart rate, oxygen saturations and how he is breathing. Hopefully we wont need to be kept in overnight but I have a bag packed with us just in case, it is Tom after all! It may be neither the downsize or speaking valve works for Tom, but at least we will have tried. And Im sure Tom will enjoy seeing all his pals while we are there :)
Posted on: Wed, 02 Apr 2014 08:43:07 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015