Bronch Day

Today was  bronch day for little Brett. His most recent bronchoscopy was over a year ago. Today's bronch was successful in that everything was done safely with the procedure; however, the doctors saw plenty of secretions and inflammation in his airways that suggest infection and the need to treat with a course of IV antibiotics.

The hospital is full right now, so the plan was originally to do the bronch, take labs, and place a PICC line and send him home until a bed opened. This was acceptable because we have had plenty of experience with caring for and maintaining central lines in Brett. Unfortunately, after 2 attempts, the sedation team was unsuccessful in placing the PICC line. That means that surgery will have to get involved.

The cutest thing today was when Brett didn't  mind getting into the gown but demanded that we put back on his socks and shoes! He wore them the whole time - maybe it made him feel more secure and brave...

This is how he feels when awakening from sedation - probably like he's been hit by a ton of bricks!

Eating crackers, feeling a bit better, and saying over and over "Go home, go home!" I'm glad we were able to.

Since Brett's case is not an emergency, the surgery to place a Broviac central catheter has been scheduled for next Monday, and a bed request has also been placed so hopefully he will be able to be admitted right away after the procedure. This scenario is not such a bad thing for 2 reasons - first, not much happens at the hospital over the weekend and now we can spend it at home with the family, and also the cultures taken during the bronch will have a chance to grow and we can target the pathogens more specifically with the most effective antibiotics. Of course, not every area of the lungs can be cultured, so we pray that the cultures that were taken are indicative of what is really going on in Brett's lungs.