Thursday, December 8, 2011

11/30 and 12/8 Appointments

Brett had a routine clinic visit in Chapel Hill last Thursday, and we discussed various options of treatment for his cough, recent gastrointestinal issues, failure to thrive, and general behavior suggesting that he feels bad.

After talking with Dr. Esther I felt as though we would wait until January and then do a bronchoscopy (what we call a "bronch") to see what his lungs look like. But then over the weekend his cough got worse and more frequent. Also he just acted as I he felt bad, which is often our most important indicator. He just doesn't smile very much, and basically just wants to be held, or sit and watch tv, or sleep. His favorite being all of the above!

Therefore, we decided to call Monday and see about getting him in for the bronchoscopy this week. Today in Raleigh we saw Brett's immunologist, Dr. Hernandez. This was also a scheduled visit, and it just happened that Dr. Esther was there as well. It is always helpful to have any of Brett's specialists in the same room to talk and make sure they are all on the same page as far as treatment. Because Dr. Esther was there I went ahead and signed all the consent papers for the bronch tomorrow in Chapel Hill.

The plan is to do the bronch, place a PICC line, and admit him for his 14th hospitalization. He has not had IV antibiotics in 11 months--that's quite a long time in Brett's world. If for some reason his lungs appear awesome-clear of secretions, infection, and inflammation, we will just come home and await the culture results from the bronch to decide on treatment.

Gantt and Brett playing at the Pediatrician's office

In other news, Gantt is sick as well with some sort of stomach illness. Trying to take care of him and get him better at the same time. Luckily, none of the rest of us have gotten sick yet!

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