Update on Gavin

Yesterday Gavin re-entered the world of tests and procedures. We took him back to the U of M for his CT scan and a meeting with the surgeon. Our friend, Mary, was kind enough to take on the job of watching both of the other boys for the whole day, and the boys were thrilled about spending some quality time with Aaron and Grace.

The first thing they did once we got to the imaging center was to work on getting an IV into him so they could inject the dye for the scan. That' not an easy thing on a person with very little veins. The nurse tried unsuccessfully to get it in each hand--there was scar tissue in both hands from the NICU IVs that was blocking the way. So we called in someone from "Vascular Access," which is a team of people who sound like they should have their own reality TV show. They are the IV gurus and can get IVs inserted when no one else can. The lady from Vascular Access had an IV in Gavin's arm in no time and we were ready for the scan once again. With all the poking and prodding he'd been through, Gavin was pretty tired, so when the tech got him all wrapped up and strapped down, he was cozy and fell asleep. He stayed asleep through the scan. The actual scan took just a minute or two and we were on our way to lunch.

Since Gavin was undressed to his diaper and wrapped in hospital blankets, they let us borrow the blankets so we didn't have to wake him up. I felt a little guilty walking to Davanni's with the hospital blanket, but I was glad to be able to keep Gavin asleep and happy. After lunch we went back for our meeting with the surgeon.

Unfortunately, the scan hadn't been read by the radiologist yet, so the surgeon was not prepared for our meeting. In retrospect, it was really a waste of time because we knew more about Gavin's situation than the surgeon. We were, however, able to look at the scan, see the mass, and discuss surgery possibilities.

Shortly after we got home from picking up the other boys, the surgeon called to confirm that the diagnosis is a bronchopulmonary sequestration. Whether or not there is still a CCAM remnant left is irrelevant--the sequestration has the potential to cause heart problems, so it has to come out. Since Gavin is doing so well, we still have a little time, though. Right now, the plan is to wait two months and then go back in for a follow-up visit. The goal is to do the surgery in November, when Gavin is six months old. We are hoping that he will be big enough by then so that the surgery can be done with a scope, rather than opening up the whole chest. The instruments would be too big if we tried to do it that way right now.

We are hoping that the November timeline actually happens. While we want Gavin to be as big and strong as possible, we also want to get this done before before the end of the year when our insurance deductible goes back to $0.

So now we go back to waiting and concentrating on normal life until sometime in October, when we will again return to the world of tests and scans to get another update. We are thankful that Gavin is doing well so far and pray that he continues to be our healthy, happy little boy, growing and developing right on target.