The surgeons rounded today and I was able to ask them several questions. I am also going to try to answer some of the questions each of you have posted on facebook.
Did the vomiting cause the hernia or did the hernia cause the vomiting?
The intestine went up through a hole in the diaphragm and twisted. When the food got to the twist, it couldn't pass and caused the vomiting. The intestine went up in there over a period of months. This isn't something that happened overnight.
Why did the surgery take so long?
There was a lot of scar tissue on the liver from the previous surgery. The liver was actually attached to the intestine and to the abdomen wall. They had to cut the scar tissue off the liver and the intestine. The intestine was also attached to the abdomen wall. Samuel had to have a blood transfusion during surgery because his liver bled when they removed the scar tissue.
How big is the patch in the diaphragm?
On Samuel's right side, he has hardly any material left in his diaphragm. He does have a small rim but it is now mostly a gortex patch there. See the picture I posted on facebook.
Why is Samuel on so much oxygen?
Samuel is on a full liter of oxygen because he is breathing fast due to the surgery. The NG tube down his throat is also bothering him. To give you some history Samuel was completely off oxygen in January. Before that he was getting .2 Liter just at night.
How long is Samuel going to be in the hospital?
He is going to be here for 7 to 10 days or until he passes gas or has a bowel movement.
How long is it going to take for the incision to heal?
6 weeks.
When is he going to be able to eat again?
A few days.
There are two goals for today:
1. To remove the Foley (a Foley is like a catheter for boys). They just did that this morning.
2. To have him walk. Samuel's intestines are in shock from the surgery and we need to wake them up to get them working again.
Thank you for your prayers.
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