Heart update

Caleb's primary health issue/concern right now is his heart. The PDA closed while he was in the NICU, but he still needs to have surgery for his complete AV canal. He's had several EKGs and echocardiograms over the last few weeks, and Caleb is examined by a cardiologist or cardiology PA every 2-3 weeks. About a week ago, he developed what sounded like a bad chest cough. After a house-call from a PA friend, a trip to a pediatric after-hours clinic, and negative flu and RSV tests, we finally figured out that too much blood was getting to his lungs and his heart wasn't working effectively. It's so hard for his little heart to pump blood properly, when the chambers of his heart aren't separated like they should be. He is now on two medications. One helps to clear fluid from his lungs, and the other helps his heart contract. The medications seem to be helping. His cough sounds better, and he's starting to eat a little more. We knew there was a possibility that this would happen around 8-12 weeks, so it wasn't a big surprise to us.

Tomorrow (Jan 7th), we are going to Dallas to meet with the cardiothoracic surgeon and tour the hospital. We still don't have a surgery date yet, but this step makes us feel like we're getting closer.