Friday Report

We went to see the Infectious Diseases doctor today for a check-up.  He says CJ is doing well, although he's not healing as fast as he'd like.

They did lab work first, so that they would have the results before we left.  Dr. Han, the ID doctor, thinks CJ may end up on antibiotics longer than initially expected: 3 months or more.  However, after 6 weeks, he may be able to switch to oral antibiotics if the infection in responding well.

The labs came back, and & overall, Dr. Han was pleased.  The white blood count, liver & kidney functions were all normal.  His sed rate was elevated, as expected, but it was still 10 points lower than when he was in the hospital, so that's good.  Another marker that Dr. Han follows is the C-Reactive Protein (CRP).  A normal rate for this inflammatory marker is below 10.0.  CJ's CRP was 12.1.  Unfortunately, we didn't have a previous test to compare this to, but Dr. Han said that most of the time when people have bad infections like CJ's, the CRP is in the 100s.  So, he's very pleased with that.

We also talked to Dr. Han about CJ going to camp next week.  Since we knew he would be post-op, he isn't signed up for any strenuous activities.  CJ's dad will also be there all week, and there is a medical facility where CJ can get his infusions and go inside if he gets overheated.  Dr. Han wasn't thrilled about the idea, but since we'd thought things out and had things arranged, he was ok with it.  He gave us a permission slip stating that CJ could be there but that he could not participate in strenuous activities or swimming.  He also told us to make sure the incision sites were well covered and cleaned daily.

We asked him about the pain that CJ still feels in the lower left side of his chest.  The right incision is still draining a lot, but the left incision doesn't drain as much.  He said that it's possible the left side is hurting more because there is still more infection on that side due to the lack of drainage.  He didn't seem too concerned about it; we'll revisit the subject at our next appointment, and of course, if it gets worse, we will call.

After our meeting with Dr. Han, the nurse came in and changed out CJ's dressings.  She sent us home with some extra supplies in case he needs them at camp.

We have a follow-up appointment for the Tuesday after CJ gets back from camp.  The home health nurse will come that Monday to draw labs & change his dressings.

The IV supply company came by and dropped off another week's worth of CJ's Ancef AccuFlo balls.  We had requested extra, since he will be at camp next week, but apparently the shelf-life of the medicine is only 7 days.  Because of this, they couldn't bring us extra.  They said they could deliver to the camp, but we know some people going up toward the end of the week and could just take the few he'll need to finish out the week.

CJ is continuing to do really well.  He's active and still not having to take a lot of pain medication.  Generally, he can go all day but then starts feeling sore towards the end. 

Thanks again for the continued prayers!