Post Surgery Update

Hi all! This is Momma Kati reporting post surgery updates.

Yesterday, Kayleigh had to be at Shands Hospital in Gainesville at 12:15 for pre-op. After 3 sticks the nurse was able to start an IV. The anesthesia person told her as soon as they put her to sleep another IV would be started, probably through her neck. An epidural was also started in her thoracic spine at T7. This would help with pain control after the surgery. She was taken to the OR around 3:30. The surgeon came to talk to me and her dad at 6:40 pm. Some of the surgery was done lapriscopically and he had to open a previous lateral scar on her belly as well. The lateral incision has a wound vac attached to it. A wound vac allows the incision to heal from the inside out. This helps when patients are not particularly healthy and the tissue is not able to heal properly.  The wound vac should be removed before she goes home.

The scar tissue around her ileum (where the small and large intestine meet),which was causing the blockage, was removed and put back together and the fistula that connected the sigmoid colon (left side) and the lower colon was removed and repaired. He said she had plenty intestines left so Short Gut Syndrome should not be an issue. Short Gut Syndrome is when you do not have enough of a digestive tract to properly feed your body with nutrition so you have to spend the rest of your life connected to an IV bag to give you the proper nutrients to survive. Kayleigh has shared her experience with this kind of therapy in past blogs. She has been on TPN for over 80 days leading up to the surgery.

The doctor expressed that this was a very difficult surgery, as he knew it would be. He is very concerned about the distended small intestines. When the intestines are swollen like that for an extended amount of time, sometimes they do not shrink back to their normal size making it difficult to digest food properly. Only time will tell if the swelling will go down.  He was able to give us the great news that she did not have to get an ostomy bag. The first thing she asked me when she woke up in PACU after the surgery was "Do I have a bag?" I was so happy to say "No", because I knew this was a concern of hers.

She was put in a patient room late in the evening. It was excruciating seeing her in so much pain. The anesthesia doctor explained that the epidural was probably not covering the area where the fistula was removed since it was lower in the bowel. More pain meds and nausea meds were ordered. It was not until after 2 am that she was finally able to rest.

Life in a hospital is not quiet though. She was bothered with all kinds of "help" through the night. However, the sun came up the next morning with the promise of better days ahead. Her NG tube was removed in the morning hours. This is the tube that sucks the fluid out of your stomach through your nose. She hates them with a passion! Then, the IV in her neck was taken out. It was causing her neck to ache so that was another small blessing! A little while later the catheter was removed. We have always seen these small blessings as our sign that she was getting closer to going home. She was able to move to the chair and sat there for almost an hour before going back to the bed for a nap.

This afternoon the nurses have made a really big deal about her blood pressure. She has very low blood pressure. Very, very low. It's normal for her. Her heart rate is usually high. These factors put the nurses in a tizzy. Finally though, she got to go on a walk around the east wing. After the walk the epidural was disconnected. Now she will take pain meds through the IV and by mouth. She is feeling the pain a lot more now. Hopefully the pain can be controlled so she can get some rest tonight. She will start a bag of TPN tonight, so still no food or drink.

 As I write this blog she is preparing to watch Pretty Little Liars. She has been looking forward to seeing it. I am very thankful for all her friends and family who have followed her through this journey. You are our strength. She couldn't do this without you. Stay tuned as we continue updates. Hopefully, she will be up to writing the next blog post....until then, keep her in your prayers and PEACE OUT from room 5210!