I Hate Dialysis Message Board
Dialysis Discussion => Dialysis: General Discussion => Topic started by: okarol on March 27, 2011, 07:42:37 PM
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Our member and moderator Epofriend has been in the hospital for nearly 3 weeks. He's having circulation problems in his hand and they can't seem to come up with a solution. It's painful and he's hoping they can save his hand, but right now we don't know what will happen.
Alene is there and helping as much as she can. His daughter was in town for a weeklong vacation but he was still hospitalized and she's now had to go home.
I hope you'll keep him in your minds and hearts. If you'd like to drop him a note or card, please PM me for his address.
:cuddle;
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Oh, I am so sorry to hear that! Please keep us informed, OK? It must be pretty serious if he's been hospitalized for that long! Sending prayers...
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definitely best wishes to epofriend. Hope they can sort the problems out soon - it sounds very uncomfortable.
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thinking of him. :cuddle;
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Hope he is soon home .
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All the very best....
Get well soon...
Darth.....
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Hope he's home soon and that they get things under control.
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Wishing you all the best and hoping you get out of hospital soon x
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any update?? sending my best well wishes for our friend....
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Oh, bless. Poor thing. *huggles* for epofriend ... wishing him all the best.
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Best wishes from Kristina,
hope you get better soon!
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My caring thoughts and prayers are with you all the way, Epofriend! :cuddle; Wish I could send some of the Vegas girls to cheer you up!
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All the best, mate!
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Wishing you well, Epofriend!
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Our member and moderator Epofriend has been in the hospital for nearly 3 weeks. He's having circulation problems in his hand and they can't seem to come up with a solution. It's painful and he's hoping they can save his hand, but right now we don't know what will happen.
Thanks to all of you for your prayers and good wishes and to those who sent cards or called. They all made quite a difference for Rolando.
18 days later, yesterday, Rolando finally got out of the hospital. Most of the time was due to inefficiency in doctor coordination and scheduling tests but I am looking at it as additional time on IV heparin and other blood thinners allowing this thing to run its course and IV pain meds to help Rolando through it.
Rolando's forearm and hand have gone from cold, grey, numb and tingly to a warm and healthy looking forearm and a cold, grey and immensely painful hand, to ultimately a warm and healthy looking forearm and a swollen painful but PINK hand. So although we have no idea what happened, things are moving in the right direction. Losing the hand is no longer a done deal. I am anticipating visits with hand and vascular specialists for a second opinion (if it can be called that in the absence of a first opinion).
Rolando is sleeping soundly. I am hopeful.
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Sounds a little more hopeful then when I talked to you Alene. Keep up the good care you do for Ro, please know you both are in my thoughts and prayers.
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:grouphug;
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praying for you!!!
xo,
R
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My prayers are with you, good friend!
:waving;
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I have been thinking about you two - thanks so much for the update Alene.
I'll keep praying. I am so glad you're there for him. Love you both!
:grouphug; :grouphug; :grouphug;
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Sending Epofriend hugs and prayers from Wisconsin.
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Prayers and best wishes! :grouphug; :grouphug;
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Certainly sounds a bit more positive....
Get well soon...
May God bless and protect you, and your family.... Will be thinking of, and praying for you all...
Love...
Darth...
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I just heard from Alene. Rolando has gone four for four - he was in the hospital for the birthdays of all three daughters and on his birthday (Thursday) he was forced to head to the emergeny room. He was readmitted. Could be gastro, not sure yet. Many symptoms but too soon to tell what the plan is. Poor guy is in pain and he's had a tough couple of months. Please keep praying for our friend. :pray; One bit of good news, his new grandbaby is due any time. :)
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I am so sorry to read about his re-admittance.
I do hope his medical troubles will be sorted out soon.
Best wishes from Kristina.
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Sending prayers his way. Hope he gets things corrected and feeling better very soon. :grouphug;
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Sorry about the 4 for 4 record but I hope he feels better and gets well soon.
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Poor Ro has been through hell lately. I don't know how much more the guy can take. Love ya Ro.. hang in there Buddy. :grouphug; :grouphug; :grouphug;
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Thank you all once again for your prayers and good wishes. The cards keep coming, one had pics from the Chicago meet and there was also a card from "down under". They brighten Rolando's day and his room.
Two admissions into the hospital in the space of a month, that is tremendously hard on Rolando. As okarol said, he has gone four for four on special events. The biggest is imminent - the birth of his second grandchild. I hope everything is resolved before she is born and Rolando can be a part of it.
Rolando is more stable than he was last week and over the weekend. This appears to be an infected gall bladder that needs to come out. But, as I am sure that many of you have experienced, the doctors are afraid to touch dialysis patients. We've hung family pictures and set up the slide show screen saver with the same to illustrate to the docs that they are not looking at a "hot gall bladder and a variety of comorbidities", but rather a very courageous man with many reasons to live. He is a husband, a father, a grandfather, a brother, and a best friend - an alive and vital person.
Hopefully they will come around before things get more serious. Again, thank you everybody.
:grouphug;
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Best wishes and I hope he can get back to work soon!
:stressed;
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:grouphug; :grouphug; :grouphug;
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:grouphug;
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:grouphug;
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Surgery is scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday) in the early afternoon.
Rolando has an inner strength and a strong faith. I am hoping for an excellent outcome.
:pray;
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Please give him a BIG HUG from me and tell him I love him! Hope all goes well. :cuddle;
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Im hoping for an excellent outcome too :pray; God bless that man, and bring him health.. :pray;
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Hoping for good results!
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Oh, the poor guy, life is raining on him now. I hope that tomorrow, after the rain leaves, the sun shines on him again. He is always in our thoughts and prayers. Best wishes for a quick recovery.
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Wishing him a very speedy recovery!...
Hope the surgery goes really well...
Love3...
Darth...
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Sorry for the delayed update. Rolando did have his gall bladder removed Wednesday evening and all went well. He is still in pain, but it is different and diminishing.
Today, a big bunch of balloons and some flowers arrived in Rolando's room from his "IHD family". That was so nice!!! Thank you.
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:flower; Thanks Alene! :bestwishes; Love to Rolando!
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Sorry for late posting, this is the first time I had seen it listed in my unread post.
Sorry to hear of al the troubles Rolando has had and I hope this surgery will help so he can feel a lot better. I'm glad he received the card with pictures. I should have included more from the Chicago meet that had more of the members in them. Not use to having the idea of having a pc in the room.
Get Well Rolando.
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Blessings and prayers for Rolando and the family! My heart goes out...... I am new to the forum, and just yesterday listened to Epo's podcast. I am so thankful for all he has done for so many as we go through these times together. Prayers for a new beginning, fresh hope, and health and vitality. Fresh breezes from Alaska sent your way.
Love
Heather
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:grouphug;
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Hopefully he is feeling better by now?
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So hopping to hear some good news soon :pray;
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Thanks everyone. Happy Palm Sunday!
We are STILL here in the hospital and will be probably for another week and please pray that that is all! Rolando is resting comfortably and is healing well after his surgery.
The saga:
March 11-28 - hospitalised for the loss of circulation in his forearm and hand - It is looking good, his hand remains weak and painful.
March 29 - April 6 - HOME!!!
April 7 - today (Apr 17) - ER for possible heart attack or sepsis - Infected gall bladder removed on Wednesday Apr 13
We would be going home today except they will be draining an old pleural effusion which had become symptomatic but couldn't be drained in March because of the blood thinners. It seems to have gotten worse since March and has to be drained via chest tube - an inpatient only procedure!
Rolando was taken off of the blood thinners for surgery, yet the chest doctors want his clotting factors still higher before they place the tube. So, here we wait. The decision was made on Friday, tube to be put in on Saturday... not happy with clotting numbers, then Sunday... STILL not happy with clotting numbers (didn't he just have surgery???), now Monday... please!!!
And then, it takes the time it takes - a day, a week, maybe more??? Meanwhile, Rolando's second grandchild is due any day now. I so hope that he will get out in time to be a part of it.
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Sorry to hear Alene about the troubles with the idiot doctors are putting Rolando through. I agree, he had surgery and now they want to wait for clotting numbers to improve, grrrr. I hope they will do it Monday so he can get out ASAP and not miss the birth of his grandchild.
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Definately praying for Rolando, Thank God he has you in his corner Alene. You are truly a saint. (Saintress)
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Sending more good wishes your way, Alene and Rolando! :grouphug;
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Thanks yet again guys. Sluff, ya know, that's not the word they use to describe me here at the hospital. I think the word starts with a "b" and they add colorful modifiers.
Wednesday night, 4/20/2011, and nothing goes easy. Rolando's minor pleural effusion easily drained by a syringe as of his hospitalization with the hand issue has become a much larger effusion post blood thinners and post surgery that can only be drained via chest tube. It seems something is bleeding into it but we don't know what and cause/effect is not obvious.
Chest tubes are a very nasty, very painful thing and they continue to hurt a lot until they are removed. We've had a setback in the fluid drainage and we are hoping against hope that the chest tube will be sufficient to drain it.
I feel so bad for Rolando but he has been extraordinary through this whole thing.
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:( I hope you get out soon Ro.
Thanks for keeping us updated Alene, I think sainthood is perfect for you! :pray;
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:grouphug; :grouphug;
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:(
Surgery in the morning to clear the pleural cavity and reexpand the lung.
:pray; that all goes well and this fixes the problem.
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Sending more good wishes your and Rolando's way.
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Oh man, I am sending a prayer and a bunch of love your way Rolando! :-* :cuddle; :cuddle; :cuddle; :cuddle; :cuddle; :pray;
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I hope everything goes well
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Just checking :pray;
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:grouphug; :grouphug; :grouphug;
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My caring thoughts and prayers are with you all the way :grouphug; :grouphug;
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:grouphug;
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Sorry for the wait and thank you everyone (okarol, :-* )
Rolando came through the surgery just fine. It was the "small" surgery where they cut small holes and go in with minilights, minivideos, and minigadgets to cleanup and peel away (causes me pain just to write that!) He is hurting, the nurses say that any chest wall surgery is immensely painful so he spent 24hrs in intensive care for monitoring vitals AND for hourly administration of fentanyl.
We're in a regular room now. Thank God. That particular ICU had a strange rule - one could visit overnight, but the visitor cannot sleep. If the visitor (caregiver, family member, whatever) falls asleep they are escorted out. I was pretty tired by Saturday morning. Dialysis for Rolando meant a trip home and naptime for me.
He still has a chest tube in but he's breathing easier. We are waiting for the chest doctors. to give us the game plan for going home.
Rolando did go 5 for 5. Grandchild #2, arrived on Good Friday, 4/22/2011, at night.
:flower; Welcome to Little Violeta
Happy Easter everyone!
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Now get some rest.
:-*
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good news :2thumbsup; and agreed..now YOU go get some rest!! :grouphug;
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:cheer: It's so good to hear from you! Thank God Ro is ok!
Wishing you and your family a very blessed Easter! :basket:
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Day 25 and still no game plan for going home. Such is the nature of the chest tube. Rolando is feeling pretty good and is looking quite svelte.
One day during the week both daughters (the twins) visited with the granddaughters - 8 month old Sophia and the newly arrived, days old Violeta. Very nice and Rolando's first opportunity to meet the newbie. Sophia and mommy came by again last night.
We were able to get out of the room (in a wheelchair) for the first time yesterday. We stayed on the floor but will venture far and wide next time to stave off stircraziness... in both of us!
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:grouphug;
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I was hopping to hear good news, but atleast there was some in your post .
Wish they could get Rolando out of there and healthy.
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:waiting; That's a long time. It must be so tough for you both.
Are you able to watch any basketball?
Take care. xoxoxox :-*
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Sounds like Ro is on the right path. Hope he gets out of there soon. :grouphug;
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Shortly after I posted, the doc came by. There is a game plan for going home! They will be placing something called a pleurx catheter in the effusion which will allow us to drain fluid periodically at home until it stabilizes. That should happen after dialysis tomorrow with discharge from the hospital Tuesday or Wednesday.
:pray;
We are both desperate to get out of here.
Okarol, I have been trying to watch the b-ball but have only been marginally sucessful. They are masters of sleep deprivation torture here at the hospital so whenever there is a lull in the action Rolando and I both take a siesta. I tune in the game and, 30 seconds later, I am asleep. That's how things went for March Madness as well.
We did make it outside today, twice. It was a beautiful breezy warm sunshiny afternoon and a very nice evening. A little taste of freedom was nice.
Thanks for your kind words.
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Thank God the door to home seems to be opening, even if just a little...
Great news...
Hope he gets home VER soon...
Love...
Darth...
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:pray; Hoping and praying you're both home soon. :cuddle;
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Day 27 - They f***ed up yesterday and didn't order up the anesthesiologist for the procedure. So, after 3 hrs down in interventonal radiology Rolando was returned to the room - hurting, hungry (NPO since the morning, NPO = anesthesia so how come no anesthesiologist?) and desperate for a bathroom break. The inefficiency here is incredible.
Amazingly, we did get a good night's sleep here last night. They will try again early this afternoon to get the chest tube out and the pleurx cath in. Hope the ducks are nicely...
UNBELIEVABLE!!! The dialysis techs just walked in here to take him for dialysis! NO!!! He dialyzed yesterday. But, a quick phone call to the neph and that snafu is worked out.
...in a row :bow;
OMG!
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:banghead; crazy!
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Forgive me for not posting until now. Rolando got out of the hospital on Thursday, 5/5, day 29. I haven't had time to post since then, until today (we're back in the hospital, but only briefly.)
The Friday and Saturday after release were days from hell. The painkiller Rolando had on that last day accumulated in his system and turned him into 200 lbs of "Rolando Jello". He had no muscle tone making it very difficult and dangerous to transfer him - wheelchair-car-dialysis chair-wheelchair-car-wheelchair-home. But we somehow pulled it off and got him the dialysis he needed. On Sunday Rolando began to recover, thank God! He has no memory of that Friday and Saturday.
We started the post hospitalization round of doctor's appointments - Monday - home health drained the effusion, Tuesday - lung doctor, Wednesday - wound care - everything was fine. Thursday - fluid started to pour out of one of the post surgical wounds. I was scared it was infected, so Friday we went to the primary care doctor. He cultured it but did nothing more. Saturday (yesterday) morning I was still worried so I called the nephrologist and asked what he thought about some vancomycin. He ordered the vanco for the last hour of dialysis. Cool. We got home from dialysis and after multiple dressing changes I realized there was fluid pouring out of a second surgical would. That was too much for us so it was off to the ER. Saturday night in Tampa - barroom brawls, gunfights, stabbings, DUI accidents, ODs, we expected a nightmare and a nightmarish wait. But, no, we somehow avoided the rush and got in quickly. Rolando was admitted last night.
Turns out that the fluid is simply from the pleural effusion. A one-week interval between drainings is insufficient so the excess fluid is finding its own way out through the unhealed incisions. They are taking precautions against infection but we will be released tonight (or tomorrow morning if there usual inefficiency prevails.)
Things are good!
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A rough time, but a satisfactory conclusion. I hope things continue to improve.
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Oh my goodness, I can hardly imagine what you all have been though, and I am so very very sorry. I pray that there will be a turn around, and that there will be a healing..... and relief very soon. Thanks so much for updating us. Blessings to you all.
Heather in Alaska
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Wow what an ordeal - I had no idea fluid would come out that way. Just goes to show you that we're always learning here. Thanks for keeping us in the loop - big HUGS and love to you both! :cuddle;
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Wow what an ordeal - I had no idea fluid would come out that way. Just goes to show you that we're always learning here. Thanks for keeping us in the loop - big HUGS and love to you both! :cuddle;
Me neither. I told him I was going to put him out in the yard with a birdbath under him as a more appropriate setting for this fountain effect.
:flower;
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Thinking of you both and really hoping that this awful time goes away soon. :cuddle; :grouphug;
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Sending you love and prayers that Rolando continues to heal and no more bumps in the road!!!
xo,
R
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This story is just mindblowing, aharris and so worrying to think of what on earth might happen next. I second what rsudock and monrien just said: here's to a smooth and rapid recovery from here on in. And more hugs, in case they help. :grouphug;
I love the fountain crack. Wierd, but cute.
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I send you my best wishes,
a rapid recovery & good luck
from Kristina. :grouphug;
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...Turns out that the fluid is simply from the pleural effusion. A one-week interval between drainings is insufficient so the excess fluid is finding its own way out through the unhealed incisions. They are taking precautions against infection but we will be released tonight (or tomorrow morning if there usual inefficiency prevails.)
Things are good!
The usual inefficiency was indeed at work only worse (thank God!). they drained the effusion on Sunday and sent the fluid (cloudy suggesting infection) off to check for infectionThe "tomorrow morning" mentioned above was Monday morning, May 16th. They had a chest x-ray ordered up for that morning as a prerequisite for leaving. Morning turned into late afternoon, but I was okay with that because there were medication issues to work out (possible infection but no antibiotic ordered, continue the vanco (or perhaps just let the bacteria grow unabated in Rolando's chest until they get things sorted out...grrr...)) The x-ray guy showed up at about 4pm and did his thing. The x-ray was fine so we packed to leave. We had been watching for culture results all day... nothing, until we were loading up the wheelchair for the first trip out to the car - INFECTION! Release cancelled, IV antibiotics ordered up. I unloaded the wheelchair.
Poor Rolando! He was happy to be getting out, then it was snatched away from him. Vanco and Zyvox ordered IV. But, through a series of fortunate misadventures, they had never established an IV site...
...and, the good doctor had ordered up a dose of Vanco at dialysis on Saturday before our trip to the ER that evening,
...and, Vanco could be administered at dialysis for the net several sessions,
...and, if for some reason Zyvox was necessary it could be orally administered,
so, the release was on again.
Happily, everything fell into place given the existence of the infection. With the Saturday dose of Vanco on board, there was no need to put Rolando through the pain of establishing an IV site. With dialysis there was a means to continue that treatment. We ran for the door before anyone could change their mind!
We have been home since Monday. Things are a little shaky and scary, but I'm hopeful that this homecoming will stick. There was a bit of a hiccup Tues/Wed, but that's for a future post. I won't be secure until I am sure the infection is gone (and how does this pleural catheter affect that, going into the area of infection with infected fluid being drawn off through it? Questions for the docs later this week.)
Thanks yet again for all the good wishes and the hugs. Yes, they help a bunch!
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There's no place like home, Dorothy! Glad you and Toto finally made it there! ;D
:grouphug;
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Wow what a time you guys have had!
Those infections can be frightening.
Best wishes that each day shows improvement.
Love you both! :cuddle;
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Oh boy, the run through the mill has been rough for you all! Here is hoping it is all getting better.