Thursday, January 13, 2011

The results are in....

So, to make a long story very short....it seems we are back at square one.
The good news is that the quad screening looked good and that there was a very tiny chance the baby could have downs syndrome (so, there is no reason to continue testing with an amniocentesis since the chances are very low).....the results for any type of virus, came back negative....as well as the results for anemia.
I asked the doctor what his experience was with this type of case, and basically, his exact words were....I have been teaching at the medical school for many years, I have spoke to many of my colleagues, and no one has seen a case like this.
Well, that's reassuring. Our baby is a medical mystery....we have no idea what to expect. So, I don't know anything....which is frustrating. I have done research on the Internet on this type of case, mostly there are a few medical journal articles that have been published and that's about it.
As of now, I will be following up with the specialist on a weekly basis. He will be keeping an eye on the fluid. As of now, there is not enough fluid there...so we don't have to think about the process of draining it. Which is good, because apparently the lungs have to be moved out of the way to insert a shunt...which could slow the progression of the lung formation.
We continue to hold on to the hope that this will all clear up on it's....Please continue to pray for our family and most of all for our sweet baby boy.

Friday, January 7, 2011

Oh Boy!

Thank you friends and family for the continued prayers and support of our sweet baby. Here is an update.....
We did in fact find out, last Tuesday, that we are having another boy! We were both excited...and a bit shocked. After our routine 20 week sonogram, the doctor told us that, during the sonogram, there was a lot of fluid seen around the heart. They were unable to see the different chambers...and check that everything was the way it was supposed to be.
After 2 VERY long days of waiting, we went to see the perinatologist, who specializes in high risk or complicated pregnancies. After doing yet another anatomy check of our baby, the doctor told us he could not figure out what was going on, or even where all the fluid was coming from....he immediately sent us to the childrens/fetal heart doctor at medical city where the baby had an echocardiogram to look at every chamber, vessel, and the blood flow of his tiny heart.
It's amazing the things they are able to see! The doctor confirmed that everything was there....the blood was flowing in and out of the heart as well as the umbilical cord. What she told us, was that the fluid was more than likely caused by something other than the heart...and that the list of possibilities was quite large.
Today, I went so do some blood work and check the blood flow from the brain...which looked normal, but we wont know the outcome of the blood tests for an ENTIRE week....which will be hard, but there is the comfort in knowing that it is more than likely not a congenital heart defect, and measurements are where they are suppose to be. They are doing a few different tests for viral infections, downs syndrome, and anemia. Obviously if it is downs syndrome, there is nothing that we can do to change that, but from the sound of it, there would more than likely be other factors that would point that direction. If it is anemia, the next step will be a blood transfusion for the baby, which will we done asap. As far as the viral infections...I am not quite sure what the options are there.
Best case scenario, the doctor said, was that this is a very isolated incident and the fluid will clear up on it's own....this is what we are praying and hoping for!