1/30 Update

The respiratory therapist was in this morning and adjusted the ventilator to allow Dorothea to breathe more on her own. They will make adjustments as needed, letting the machine help her when necessary, and taking over for her when her lungs are tired and not able to work hard enough to keep the numbers where they need to be. The lung specialist let us know that she will be on the ventilator for quite a while. He first said weeks... then he said it could be as soon as 2-3 weeks, but he thinks it will more likely be 6-8 weeks. This is tough to hear. However, it is better to know and be prepared for the long haul. So, as long as she is on the ventilator she will not be able to speak, or eat by mouth.

The PEG (stomach feeding tube) was put in yesterday afternoon. They began her feeding again early this morning. However, there is now blood in the renal catheter, so they have stopped the feeding for now. When I left this morning they were waiting on the doctor to come in and take a look and see what might be causing the blood. It is possible that it is a side effect of the PEG. I will update on that when I know more.

The lung Dr. confirmed that she does have pneumonia, which they are treating her for with antibiotics. She will be on that for 10-14 days. She is still in "isolation" - we need to wear gowns and gloves when in her room. I was wrong about the masks though - they do not feel the infection is airborne.

Dr. Bradley (lung dr.) described Dorothea as being in a catabolic state - and what we want her to be in is anabolic state. Look it up if you want to... a little too complicated for my non-medically educated brain! But basically my understanding is that her body is not putting everything together like it needs to(synthesizing). They are providing her with everything she needs to rebuild, but now it is up to her body to put it all together. Hopefully I have not mis-spoke on any of that - but that is the way I understood what he was telling me.

We continue to look for all of the baby steps to keep our spirits and hope up. It was great to see her doing some of her own breathing this morning. The respiratory therapist was pleased with her efforts, good to hear.

Again, she is receiving LOTS of great care from a great staff. Please keep your prayers coming! Thank you for your continued support!