Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Still Here - Playing Catch-Up and Matt's Supraglottoplasty

I have been absent from the bloggy world. I have a good excuse. We had four - count them, four - surgeries this past spring. Two for Matthew and two for Nolan.


First was Nolan's attempted supraglottoplasty in February, which couldn't be completed because he had funny, white exudate all throughout his airway. He had to be woken up from general anesthesia and we were sent home. The cultures were normal, so this mystery was never explained.


Second was Matt's tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy in March. An outpatient surgery with 8 long days of recovery.


Third was Nolan's supraglottoplasty and 3 day stay in the PICU in April. He was intubated on a ventilator for 2 days.


Fourth was Matthew's supraglottoplasty and overnight stay in the PICU for observation on June 25, 2013.

Honestly, I plead exhaustion. It was simply a ridiculously exhausting spring.

Matthew's surgery went very well. Nolan's genetic syndrome (Ehlers Danlos) wreaks havoc on his tiny body, and it is much more evident when comparing the boys' surgery recoveries. Nolan was in a lot of pain and had a lot of trouble swallowing and required ventilation assistance after surgery. Matthew cried for an hour after surgery, then demanded French toast and a cheeseburger.

Unfortunately, he was only allowed clear liquids for the rest of the day. The morning, however, brought French toast and an ecstatic Matt. "Mommy, this is the goodest breakfast ever!"


Matt's recovery was ridiculously easy. He didn't have to take any pain medication after the first day in the hospital. We went home 24 hours after the operation. 48 hours after his surgery, he was playing in his baseball team's championship game. They got second place.


Seriously. This is Matthew 48 hours after surgery. His recovery was insanely easy. It was nice to have things go so smoothly!

We have a sleep study on August 9, 2013 (this coming Friday) to determine if he still has sleep apnea. I certainly hope his apnea is gone!

4 comments:

Kyla said...

Glad you guys have had a chance to relax this summer after all the craziness of spring!

Herding Grasshoppers said...

That IS an exhausting spring! So glad Matt's surgeries were "easy", with smooth recoveries :D

Julie

dlefler said...

Summer has been wonderful so far. I am dreading the return of the school year, because we are having so much fun (and no doctor appointments)!

Anonymous said...

I am glad all went well-
Melissa ( loudest house....)