Noah's Friday

Our first day at LPCH (Lucille Packard Children's Hospital) consisted of in-processing and some pre-op tests. Noah got another (his 3rd) echocardiogram, which took about an hour. An echo is similar to the ultrasound many women experience during pregnancy - it uses sound waves to take pictures inside the body, and can even use doppler to show some blood flows in the heart. Very clear was the 19mm hole (VSD) between his left and right sides of the heart. Again, this hole - normally a bad thing - is keeping Noah alive in his present state.

After the echo, Noah was examined by two specialists from the heart-cath section. They checked Noah for anything that might delay or inhibit his heart catheterization from being performed on Monday. They also briefed Robin and me on risks involved and possible pre-surgery preparations that might be accomplished with the cath. Examples would be stretching certain blood vessels open or inserting a stent (or even a block) to better control blood supply to/from Noah's heart.

The day ended with a trip to the blood draw laboratory. Noah wasn't too happy to hear he had to "get a shot," but was very brave and with some distraction via NintendoDS, he managed to give 5 vials of blood in about 90 seconds. That called for a celebratory trip to McDonald's for fruit smoothies!

All in all, an easy, successful first day. We continue to thank God for Noah's health - by far the longest he's gone without a fever or lung complication. After the weekend, we'll be back!

Adam