Wednesday, January 13, 2010

The babies had a relatively good night last night, which is such a praise because when we arrived at the NICU after dinner, Adelaide was bradying. We mentioned this in our last blog - it's where her heart rate and oxygen level take a drastic dip, like she's holding her breath. The nurses believed it was from acid reflux, but Adelaide did that several times in a row last night. It scared us, but the nurse and the nurse practitioner decided to suction out her nose and throat, finding that she was plugged up with blood and mucus. The prongs from the oxygen mask cause irritation, so they have given her some medicine to help, and she will be on the prong-free mask for 48 hours while her little sinuses and blood vessels heal. Besides that, Adelaide is still doing well. Tara was able to hold her for a few minutes yesterday while they changed her incubator, graduating her to the next size. She is no longer the heaviest of the three even though she is getting the fortified milk. Andrew has just caught up to her.

Andrew's lungs are still not improving. Because his oxygen intake is still fairly high, the doctor has suggested steroid treatments which would help speed up the growth of his lungs and would also help him to get rid of the extra air pockets. This would help decrease the amount of oxygen he would need from the vent. Tara will be talking to the doctor about the treatment today to determine when and how the steroids would be administered and the possible side effects from these types of medications. Andrew continues to give the nurses a run for their money. He is getting big at a whopping 2 lbs. 4 oz.

This morning, Mattie was moved from the jet ventilator to the conventional. It is a step in the right direction. She continues to be the feistiest of the three. Last night, Tara was able to change her diaper and help calm her down. She weighs 1 lb. 11 oz. and they have increased her feeds to 12 mL. They are hoping to get her solely on Tara's milk by the end of this week. They are also continuing her respiratory treatments; the nurse told us we should see better results from these treatments now that Mattie is on the conventional vent. All three babies are trying to turn their heads even with all of the tubes and hoses. They are very strong and mighty despite their sizes. We are very thankful.

Praises
Mattie moving to the conventional ventilator.
Adelaide graduating to a new incubator.
Weight gain for Andrew.
Increased feedings on all.
Getting to see Andrew's big eyes.

Prayers
Clarity and wisdom for Kevin and Tara as they make a decision on Andrew's steroid treatments.
Andrew's lungs would work properly and be clear.
Mattie would respond well to the conventional ventilator.
Adelaide's nose would clear up, so she won't have to go back on a ventilator.
Once Adelaide's nose clears up, the prongs wouldn't irritate her.