So, Elise's doctors at Texas Children's Hospital (TCH) have repeatedly told us that it is critical that Elise gain as much weight as possible prior to transplant. Ideally, they would like Elise to weight at least 20-22 lb at the time of the operation, as this ideal weight seems to correlate with a decreased risk of complications such as clots in the portal vein. When they first placed Elise's NG feeding tube, Elise was far behind her goal, not even on the growth charts, weighing less than 12 lb at age 6 months old. Today, she is 8 months old and weighs exactly 17 lb 0 oz, putting her in at least the 25th percentile for weight. Rather than being ecstatic, I am cautiously optimistic, because just yesterday, I realized that her tummy is more distended than it has ever been previously. (click "read more")
We have already been old that she has "Ascites," and her doctors predicted that it would soon be getting worse. So all this begets the question, is her current weight gain true body mass or is it fluid? Well, we have an upcoming "liver clinic" appointment at TCH, so I'm hoping to get a doppler ultrasound to check things out. In fact, I may insist on it.
No comments:
Post a Comment