West teacher's daughter in need of kidney

[okarol]

03/14/2008

West teacher's daughter in need of kidney

By: Jazmond Goss, Leader staff writer
   
For many, the only chance at a healthier life lies in the death of others.

Kim Bultsma, a teacher at Bellevue West, is the mother of 2-year-old Mallory, a lively toddler in desperate need of a new kidney.

"We're still waiting to get the official letter that she is on the transplant list," Bultsma said.

According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, 98,049 people nationwide wait for a life-saving organ.

Kim and her husband, Chris, were excited to learn in October 2005 they were expecting a child.

"I told him we were pregnant by sticking the test stick in the back of his pants pocket before he got dressed in the morning," Bultsma said, laughing.

After their first ultrasound in February 2006, it became evident that there was something wrong.

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"We could see Mallory's bladder on the ultrasound, which is not good. If you can see fluids in the baby and their organs, there's something that's not right," Bultsma said.

The couple was told that their child was a boy because this problem never occurred in girls.

"They told us 'he' had a problem where the urethra is not formed properly and usually when they have that problem, they also have Down syndrome, because there is not enough amniotic fluids for the brain to develop completely," Bultsma said. "The baby's urine replaces the amniotic fluids, and she had an obstruction in her bladder. They told us our options were termination or amniocentesis."

Amniocentesis is a procedure where a sample of amniotic fluid is received from the amniotic sac of a pregnant woman by inserting a needle through the abdominal wall. The sample is used to diagnose certain genetic defects or other complications.

"We decided to try the amniocentesis and we found out that there were no chromosome abnormalities and that it was a girl," Bultsma said.

"The doctors told us that if we didn't do anything, her bladder could explode, and she would die from the toxins in her body, so we were going to have a pigtail catheter placed."

A pigtail catheter is placed inside the bladder of the child to allow the urine to leave its body and replace the amniotic fluids in the sac. The doctor places the catheter through the uterus of the mother.

"Just as we were about to begin the procedure, her bladder shrank on the ultra sound screen - she'd peed. The doctors told us she must only have a partial obstruction and decided to stop the procedure because it's not necessary and the risk is so high," Bultsma said. "So we had to go in regularly to have the levels checked. She was born three months prematurely because of how low the fluids had gotten. She was only 3 pounds, 8 ounces."

Mallory has grade-five bladder reflux, in which the urine in her bladder does not completely leave her body. The muscles connecting her ureters to her bladder do not close the pathway completely, allowing urine to reflux back into her kidneys when she urinates. Long-standing urine in the kidneys could cause cysts and/or kidney failure.

Mallory has been getting dialysis since January. Dialysis is used to remove toxic substances from the blood. It is a procedure required for individuals with severe kidney failure.

"Going through dialysis was hard, but it was a good thing," Bultsma said. "She's much more active and her teeth are starting to come in. She's getting stronger and she's eating more - she hasn't been able to eat on her own since last April."

For now, the Bultsmas will continue to wait for an organ to become available.

"They prefer to have a live donor for younger children and that they be a blood match donor - there's less chance of rejection that way," Bultsma said. "She's an O positive, and no one in our family but Chris's dad is a match, but he's on blood pressure meds and can't donate."

Students of Bultsma's at Bellevue West have also offered to get tested.

"[And] we've had friends offer to donate and get checked to see if they can - it's very humbling. It's hard because words can never express enough gratitude for their willingness to offer up a part of themselves."

http://www.lavistasun.com/site/tab3.cfm?newsid=19379884&BRD=2712&PAG=461&dept_id=559850&rfi=6


Photo submitted by Kim Bultsma. Mallory Bultsma was born with kidney disease and undergoes dialysis.