One step back. I just talked to Hannah's doctor, and they're going to put her back on CPAP (higher pressure of air up her nose) for a few days. Blood tests showed that her CO2 levels were rising, indicating that she's working too hard to breathe. If allowed to continue, that could lead to other problems as well as burn up energy that she would otherwise use to grow. The CPAP keeps her lungs from deflating all the way, which makes it much easier for her to draw each breath (the same way a balloon is much easier to inflate after the first breath).
This means she'll have to go back over the the ICU area of the NICU while she's on CPAP. We halfway expected this development, and it's really not as much a setback as an indicator that she'll be in the hospital a little longer. Probably another month.
The expectation is that, as she continues growing, her lungs will get larger and the muscles that serve them stronger, and her nasal passages will grow to allow more airflow. All these things should lead to less dependence on the oxygen.
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Week 36, Day 2, Two Steps Forward . . .
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