Taking Matters Into His Own Hands...

Today Mason decided that he didn't need his NJ feeding tube anymore. He took matters into his own hands and yanked it out this morning. Unfortunately the doctors, nurses and his parents didn't agree. Mason has earned himself another road trip to the 3rd floor radiology lab to have another one placed tomorrow. Until he receives a new tube he cannot be fed. His IV fluids and nutrition were increased to make up for the difference.

Mason continues to do well with his vent sprints. He is up to 4 hours 2 times per day. We are still hoping that he gets extubated tomorrow, but are now wondering if the NJ tube will take priority and push that back a day or two. I guess we will find out tomorrow.

He also seems to be handling the methadone and sedation weans pretty well.

No More Drips

I have lots to update tonight. Mason no longer has IV drips for Morphine and Sedation! He is now on injections (into his iv) of Methadone and his Sedation meds every 6 hours. He was switched from Morphine to Methadone to help this transition period. It still does the same for pain, but is much easier to wean when it comes to withdrawals. Mason is currently showing mild signs of withdrawals which is expected since he has been on morphine and sedation meds since birth. The docs hope to have him weaned from both completely in mid-August.

Mason has continued to sprint on his vent. He is now sprinting for 4 hours at a time with good results. He will have another sprint tonight and 2 tomorrow. The docs (and us too!) are hoping to get him off of the vent sometime on Monday. He seems to be letting us know he is ready by grabbing and hitting his breathing tube. He has also started to move his head back and forth to try and free himself from the tube.

Feeding is going well now. Mason is up to 11 cc's per hour which is more than halfway to his goal of 18. He is now having his feeds increased by 1cc 3 times per day. At this new rate (if all goes well) he will be at his goal by Tuesday morning. When this happens they can take away his TPN which is his IV nutrition. They have been reducing it while they are increasing the milk and his color is starting to look more normal. The TPN is yellow in color and had given him the "Holden NICU tan". He is also starting to gain weight and is up to 7lbs.

Here are the latest pics....

Steady Progress

Today Mason "sprinted" on his vent. This is a term the docs use for a trial where Mason does all of the work himself. He initiates each breath and only recieves minimal pressure support from the vent (to overcome the tubing, etc.). He sprinted for 1 hour in the morning and 1 hour this evening. He did great both times. The docs took a blood gas after each sprint and they both looked good. The docs will continue to sprint Mason on his vent multiple times over the next couple of days to help him build stamina to breathe on his own. When they feel he is ready, he will be extubated (tube and vent removed). When this happens Mason will receive nasal cannulas to give him a little extra boost of oxygen and pressure.

Mason's feeds are not going quite as well as his vent progress. He vomited a couple of times in the last 24 hours so the docs slowed down his feeds and will only increase them by 1cc per hour until he reaches his goal of 18cc's per hour. Tonight Mason is at 6cc's per hour. He will sometimes gag on his vent tube and we think this might be causing him to vomit. Hopefully once he is off the vent the feeding situation will improve. The NJ feeding tube he received has really helped him. Mason is also starting to poop multiple times a day :) Travis and I learned firsthand what tar poop was!

Here are a couple pictures of Mason during his sprint this morning.....

Progress

We are so proud of Mason's progress so far! The docs are continuing to wean his vent pressures. Today he is at 22. Last night they put him back on the vent program that allows him to do most of the work. He seems to be tolerating all of this very well. The docs are thinking that Mason might be off the vent early next week. We have our fingers crossed!

Mason is off of his antibiotic treatment from the closure of his chest. His diuretics have also been weaned to twice daily doses. The docs are also weaning his morphine and sedation and within 1 week he should be off his IV drips for both. When this happens, he will get bolus injections until those are weaned.

Feeding has also been going well so far. He is being given continuous 3 cc's per hour and will go up to 4 cc's at 11pm tonight. His goal is to get up to 18 cc's per hour before they start bolus feeds (large amounts in shorter time periods).

Mason is also continuing his physical therapy and was even sleeping on his belly when I came in this morning. The physical therapist put him there thinking he would only like it for a few minutes but he fell asleep and stayed on his belly for almost 3 hours!

Busy Day

Another busy day at UofM today. To start, the docs weaned Mason's vent pressure and rate today and he tolerated both very well. The docs also began the weaning process again for his morphine and sedation and he seems to be doing well with that too.

Mason also took a road trip down to the 3rd floor for his urology tests and feeding tube placement. The urology tests came back fine. This is of course great news and means no further major surgeries for Mason. It was a hard test to watch as it took place in one of the large radiology labs. Picture a huge x-ray machine and a small 6 pound baby right in the middle. I wasn't prepared to see him in such large equipment and it broke my heart to see just how small and fragile he looked. As for Mason, the tests didn't seem to phase him at all. He was a little upset at first and then he slept through the rest. In the process Mason also received his NJ tube. This is a feeding tube that passes through his nose and into his intestines. The docs are hoping that this will help with his reflux. They are already discussing the possibility of starting his feeds tomorrow.

The biggest news of the day is that Noah's parents got to take him home this afternoon! Noah did great tolerating his feeds and the docs let him go home. We are excited for Noah and his family and we are sure they will do great!

Update

It is hard to believe that Mason will be 8 weeks old tomorrow. Time has flown by. We knew this would be a long road, but it certainly does not seem like 8 weeks have already passed. We want to say thanks again to everyone for all of the positive comments and encouragement!

Mason looks like he is feeling better today. The docs went up on his morphine this morning because he looked fussy when they did their morning rounds. He seemed to be comfortable when I came in this morning. He spent a good half hour awake and looking around. Before I left, I read him a story and he fell asleep :)

Mason has come down some on his vent pressure. It was weaned down to 26 (from 29 on Monday). His blood gases continue to look good so we are expecting to see another wean tomorrow.

Recovering

Mason is no longer on a drug to keep him paralyzed, as the docs allowed him to wake up and move around today. His fever has also subsided, but they are still watching him closely. Mason's belly still looks pretty tight and his whole body is very puffy from all of the extra fluid and blood he received after the surgery. The docs have not weaned his vent settings yet, but his blood gases have consistently looked good so we are expecting that they will soon (maybe tonight?). The docs have also put his morphine and sedation weaning on hold until they are sure that he is comfortable after his surgery.

Mason's feeding tube and other tests have been rescheduled to Friday to give him another day to rest and recover. He deserves it!

Here are some pictures (taken last week) of Mason finding his nostril :)