Posted by Matt Fray
As most of you know, Erin had reconstructive surgery on Wednesday. She made good improvement on Thursday, getting her pain under better control and, though it was very difficult, even got out of bed to sit in a chair for an hour or so. But her recovery process slowed down on Friday.
For those of you who don't have the time or desire to read the medical play-by-play, here's the authorized Cliff Notes version:
- Erin began having internal bleeding in her chest on Friday morning.
- She lost enough blood that she needed to have some blood infused on Friday evening.
- She is now being monitored to see if her body will heal the bleeding itself or if surgery is required.
And for those of you who appreciate medical details, or who love Erin so much they want to know everything that is going on, or who simply have spare time on their hands today, here's the unabridged version:
- Erin began having internal bleeding in her chest on Friday morning. Throughout the morning she became increasingly weak and pale (even her lips turned white). In addition, her temperature and heart rate were rising steadily, her blood pressure was falling, and bruises were appearing on her chest. So in the afternoon the doctors did an ultrasound (to check for excess fluid in her chest) an some blood tests (to measure her hemoglobin count, which helps indicate blood loss). The ultrasound did show excess fluid and her hemoglobin count was very low (a normal hemoglobin count for a female is 12, and hers was at 4). While some blood loss is normal following surgery (because of the blood thinner used during and after surgery), she was losing too much.
- She lost enough blood that she needed to have some blood infused on Friday evening. While the doctors wanted to avoid giving her blood (because it risks the viability of the transplanted tissue), they determined that the blood loss was affecting her overall health in such a way that she really needed the infusion. So on Friday evening she was given 3 units of blood. She quickly regained her color and strength (enough to watch the Cardinals win Game 5 of the NCLS), her hemoglobin count rose to 8, and we both got a good night's sleep.
She is now being monitored to see if her body will heal the bleeding itself or if surgery is required. While her improvement last night was encouraging, it will take a day or so to see if her body continues to improve. So far today she does seem to be maintaining her strength (as you can see in the picture to the right, she even got out of bed to sit in a chair for a while this morning), though her hemoglobin count is down to 6 (it is normal for the hemoglobin to rise dramatically following an infusion and then fall slightly). Her doctor came by about an hour ago and he said he anticipates that her blood loss will stop now (since the blood thinner is completely out of her system) and that her body will be able to absorb any lost blood. However, there is still the possibility that a surgery would be needed at some point if the problem persists.
We are very thankful that Erin's condition has improved since yesterday. Please continue to pray that God would heal her body so that she can avoid another surgery. Lord willing, she will continue improving and will be able to go home on Monday.
