Just when we thought we were moving in the right direction, we were thrown a curve ball. When Susanne called last night around midnight the nurse informed her that things looked stable overall. When Scott called early this morning the nurse had something different to say. Starting at around 2:00 am, Paxton's oxygen levels began to drop significantly. The neonatologist and cardiologist decided to increase his nasal oxygen to see if that would make any difference. Unfortunately, they saw no improvement. The cardiologist did an ultrasound of the heart and confirmed that the shunt they had been watching had finally closed, but Paxton was unable to pump enough blood to his lungs without that shunt being open. The doctors had to intervene by placing a catheter in a vein on Paxton's scalp to be able to administer a medication called Prostaglandin-e to open the shunt back up. This was just a temporary fix until they can schedule a surgery to place an artificial shunt that will last longer. Yes, you read that right...Paxton will need surgery soon to have this artificial shunt put in place. Scott and Susanne were extremely scared and thrown off guard with this update especially since he had been doing so well, even six hours prior. The cardiologist discussed the need for Paxton to have this surgery scheduled sooner than later.
After it is in place, we have to give Paxton time to grow and reevaluate his heart in four to six months to see what the next step will be. More than likely he will need another surgery, they are just not sure which approach will be most appropriate at this point. Once again, we are having to practice our patience.
When Susanne went to visit with Paxton she was informed that he was on the surgery schedule for Monday morning. After the surgery, Paxton will be transferred to the PICU (pediatric intensive care unit). Paxton will be upset to leave all of the girlfriends (nurses) he has acquired in the NICU. He's quite the ladies' man.
The best news of the day was that Scott was coming home. We had a late night visit with our little man which ended up being a very rewarding one. Scott finally got to hold Paxton for the first time. What a touching moment. Scott was successful with getting Paxton to take the pacifier again. This is exciting because it helps him to strengthen his muscles in his mouth and helps to force his tongue into the right position.
After a long day of ups and downs, it was very comforting for Scott and Susanne to be able to go to bed in each others' arms.
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