Wednesday, April 23, 2008

A Much Better Day

Its a quick post as I'm tired but want to get out an update. Madeleine has had a much better day. Here's the evidence:

- She has slowly been weaned from dopamine throughout the day-- at 8PM, she was moved to 8, from a high last night of 20. What is particularly encouraging is that she hasn't wavered at all today. Unlike after the surgery on Friday when she constantly moved up and down, she's just slowly moved down all day-- a sign that she's stable and winning the fight against infection.
- She has been weaned on the ventilator to room air. The doctors feel like they could wean further but want to wait for a day or two to ensure she is comfortable before weaning further from the vent.
- She has output in the ostomy-- quite a bit of output. In the past 24 hours, she's had over 15 cc's of output. That's more than she ever got in a 24 hour period with the previous ostomy and she's not even eating right now.
- Her white blood cell count was 45 today. that's high but not as high as it was after the last surgery (60). We hope to see progress tomorrow morning when the next results come in.

That's all-- as you can see, its been a steady and good day. We hope for the same tomorrow. Thanks again to everyone for your support.

Brent and Kirsten

5 comments:

Will said...

Thank you (and THANK GOD) for the good news :)

Brian Beabout said...

Thanks for leaving an UP post today after yesterday's big surprise. Hang in there, I'm impressed at the positive tone in (almost) all your posts. Nobody wants to go through this, and you all seem to be doing admirably. Keep it up.

Anonymous said...

Hi Kirsten and Brent,

As I've been reading I've been reflecting on how much we're capable of when put to the test. And, you two have certainly been tested.

Look for opportunities to laugh--it will help smooth out the bumps in the road.
We love you!!xoxox Donna and Jim

Anonymous said...

Jules and I continue to pray for all three of you. Meantime, I am stockpiling cigars and Lemoncello to be savoured (note Canadian spelling) at the appropriate juncture. Go Maddy and parents! Chuck

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing the latest news on Madeleine's progress with all of us. I know how exhausted you both are. She's a fighter, this kid!!

Love, Al