Hemi-Fontan

HEMI FONTAN (BIDIRECTIONAL)
AND PULMONARY ARTERY AUGMENTATION


March 22nd, 2011

Surgery started at 840 and ended at noon. Surgeon reported everything went well. Daylen was extubated 2 hours after he was settled into his room. All went well there. After extubation, he started moaning and grunting as if he was uncomfortable.

The nurse switched his pain meds and even gave him Tylenol up the rear to help with headaches. He ached for a good 7-8 hours and then finally calmed down some. They gave him some diluted apple juice to drink and he took his pacie really well.

March 23, 2011

Daylen is doing really well today. He is back at kicking his blankets off like a normal baby, and pulling wires and his hair out! They are feeding him 2 oz of milk at a time now. They took out his catheter, and his atrial line. They are also slowly weening him off of his IV medicines and starting him on oral meds. He has also been awake a few times to watch a lil bit of cartoons. 

March 24, 2011

Nurse attempted to let Daylen breathe without any oxygen in his nose and his sat levels went from high 80's to mid 60's so he's not quite ready for just room air. He still isn't eating a lot, but takes some food here and there. His RA line has been taken out, and so was the IV in his foot! We were also sent up to the general pediatric floor for the rest of his recovery! 

March 25, 2011

Daylen is doing so much better eating wise! He ate 6 times for me today at about 2-3 oz per feeding! I'm so proud of him! He has smiled so much today and also played a little with his stuffed animals and toys! He is still having headaches (assuming from the whimpering) and is still on oxygen. A cardiologist (not our typical one) came by today to check Daylen out to see what the issue was with his sat levels and he mentioned up-ing his dose on lasix to try and get some of that extra fluid retention away! Hopefully thats the case! Daylen is back on his sleep schedule, and is no longer needing morphine! We are down to Lortab, lasix, motrin, and ibprofen! 

March 26, 2011

Daylen is still doing wonderful! He is back to his regular sleep and nap schedule! Dr. Abraham also removed the drainage tube today so that is one step closer to going home! The only thing left to monitor is his breathing now! He is still on a 1/2 L of oxygen which takes his SAT's up to low 90's occasionally, but he still drops to the 70's without it! 

Oxygen-saturation levels in the 90's with only 1/2 L of oxygen

March 27, 2011

No more IV's! YAY! After clothing Daylen a few times, I had noticed during a jammy change that the tape on his IV was starting to look kind of gross, as I looked closer I noticed part of his IV was sticking out of his skin so I informed the nurse and she said the IV is no longer good anyway so they removed it. Thank god! I do not want anything foreign in my baby ANYMORE! Poor kiddo needs a break! Still working on the oxygen! Nurse turned his oxygen down to a 1/4 L now and we are still hanging in the mid 80's to high 80's. 

Chewing on his oxygen candela :)

March 28, 2011

Time to go home!!! :) Nurse Sarah came by around 2pm and whispered in my ear the news we have been waiting for! Dr. Abraham felt like Daylen is good to go home so of course I packed up in 10 mins!! Goodbye Peyton Manning Children's Hospital! See you next year!

Waiting to be discharged

Hemi-Fontan Post-Op/Hospital Recovery

A few things that we were instructed NOT to do were lifting Daylen up from under his pits for 6 weeks! It's back to "scooping" him up like a newborn! Tummy time isn't exactly restricted but its up to his liking or not! Activity can be presumed back to normal but he barely sits so def don't have to worry about him climbing! Bath time can be done as long as his incision isn't immersed in water. 

His post op appointment is in 1 week to see how things are going and to get the 1 and only incision stitch removed at the top! 

Something I'm not happy about is having to remove the huge piece of tape on his side that covers up the hole where his drainage tube was! There are TWO pieces bc Dr. Abraham missed the first time! and this stuff is the stickiest of sticky! The nurse gave us plenty of nice sized bandages in cases it wasn't scabbed over yet. 

Medicines that Daylen is now taking is baby Aspirin for blood thinning. Lasix and Aldactone which both help drain the kidneys and get the extra fluid out. Lortab (hydrocodone) for pain medication along with infant tylenol in case Lortab isn't enough. The lortab is apple flavored but Daylen still tries to spit it back out at me just as he did with the nurses! Seems like a lot of work but we have done it b4 so we will do it again! :) 

Since Daylen had a blood transfusion with this surgery, he does not have his own antibodies in his system so another thing we were instructed to do was limit the social contact for a few weeks until he see his Pediatrician for some shots!