Brochoscopy

(I actually wrote this on 7/9 but am just now getting around to posting it)

It's 10:10 and Dyl is in Riley Hospital having her bronchoscopy.

I thought they were going to put her under but they aren't and I'm happy about that. Anesthesia in babies scares me. They sprayed some stuff in her nose to numb it (she really didn't like that) and they are going to wrap her up like a tiny mummy, numb her throat and go for it.

She is, in actuality, only about 100 feet from us, through two closed doors. If I listen hard enough I can almost hear her screaming. If she was better able to express her feelings I'm sure she would tell them exactly where they could stick their tube!!

She is 21 months old today. Hell of a way to celebrate turning another month older.

Dr. Kim, who is doing the procedure, said she would be able to tell us if she saw any structural abnormalities in the bronchial tubes at the end of the procedure.

10:20 and it's all over. The nurse who brought Dyl back to us said in about 5 more minutes the doctor would let us know how it went. Dyl's eyes are red and puffy from crying. She got a big teddy bear out of the deal. After they were done they led her to a toy box and she grabbed the bear. She has already become very attached to the bear because she won't let me have it to take the tag off of it's ear.

I'll be back after the doctor speaks to us.

Okay, so at least we know what's wrong now.

There were no structural abnormalities. Thank you God! No tumors or masses. Just lots of gunk. The doctor said that of the 15 minutes they had her back there, they spent about 5 minutes just suctioning crap out of her airways. Her trachea is inflammed. You are supposed to be able to see cartilage rings down there. You can't. Her adenoids are huge, but her tonsils are small. There is some lymphoid enlargement. She also said that with the sheer amount of secretions that there was bound to be a bacterial infection somewhere in there. All of this adds up to a diagnosis of severe asthma. More severe than originally thought. I know asthma is a dangerous condition, but I have to honestly say that I'm happy it's "just" asthma. This is something we can deal with. They started her on an inhaled steroid and a 14 day course of Augmentin for the probable bacterial infection.

On the way home she slept. We remarked that it was the first time in a long time that we couldn't hear her breathe while she slept. She didn't rattle, gurgle or wheeze. Unfortunately, that won't last because the gunk will build up again. If the new medication works, the inflammation will subside and she will be able to breathe easier. I wonder if removing the inflammed adenoids would make a difference. I have to remember to ask Dr. Montgomery that at our follow up appointment.

We've been told by the pediatric pulmonolgist that the asthma is likely the result of her bout of bronchiolitis at 3 months old. I had to fight like hell for 4 days and give up Jay's birthday (We spent the night of his birthday in the ER with Dyl while he was home with the neighbor.) to get her admitted. She was breathing more than 60 times per minute and didn't pee for 36 hours. At the time I felt like they admitted her to shut me up. And maybe they did, but that baby needed to be in the hospital. She spent 4 days there.

Anyhow, the WWWD (What's Wrong With Dyl) phase is over. At least we know what's going on now. I'm thankful for that. We will deal with this.

A great big thank you to Dr. Kim and the nurse who assisted her. I'm so sorry that I didn't get her name. You both were great!