Saturday, March 23, 2013

Returning to MD Anderson

The big picture is that Kristi will need to return to MD Anderson.  Dr. Stillwell (the local infectious disease doctor) has worked steadily at trying to resolve Kristi's infection. In our naive non-medical minds we are trying to make since of all we've learned in the last couple days and I hopefully can make sense of it here for you.  What we do know is that Dr. Stillwell feels like they are not equipped here to bring this to an end for Kristi and she needs to return to a place that fully understands her surgery and its aftermath.  

He explained to her last night that locally and at MD Anderson they have continued to grow the cultures that they've taken and multiple infections have shown up - Staph ( a non threatening type of staph, not MRSA) strep and posistive and negative rods as well as other types that I don't even know how to spell :)  The abscess that they have located in her abdomen when she first came in to the Ark. Hospitial is shrinking so we do know that antibiotics are working there. However our bodies respond to an abscess by creating a  capsule around it and the antibiotics work from the outside in, therefore the treatement is slow and the goal is to stay ahead of it so that it does not break free and go systemic throughout her body. At this time they feel like the antibiotics are working and staying ahead of the game.  However due to all the bacterias/staph that is growing in her body it seems to indicate there is a fistula (hole in an organ) or leakage of some sort either in her GI tract or GYN tract.  This does not show up on the scans and once again an area that Dr. Stillwell says they are not equipped to treat.  MD Anderson will determine if there is a leakage and treatement would require surgery.

Another scan they did this week as noted in an ealier post was to test the kidneys.  On the CT Scan it showed that her right Kidney was enlarged.  I guess a normal kidney clears in under ten minutes and Kristi's right cleared in 20 min. and her left in 34 minutes.  This would indicate that the Left kidney was having to over work itself but yesterday showed that they were producing equally one at 51% and the other at 49% so this is a good sign and just something they will need to watch. At this point they will not put a tube in to drain the kidneys since they seem to be draining at equal rates.

At this point we will wait through the weekend before we are able to set up her return to MD Anderson.  She has been accepted to acute hospital care here which is due to the fact that she is on 4 different antibiotics and that is too much to go home with and expect home health to cover that for her.  She will need to remain in the hospital for 5-6 weeks for the IV treatments. At this point we dont know if that means  MD Anderson for that entire time frame or if she'll get returned home to this hospitals acute care floor.  

Recently I did a study on battling discouragement, the key ingredient being that we focus on God's Character and not on our circumstances.  Kristi told me today she's focusing on staying under the trial God has for her instead of spending all her energy wishing it way.  We celebrate that God is our Hope He is El Shaddia, the one who is all sufficient, He knows and Understands all things.  As Isaiah 40 states He does not grow weary or tired (just we do) Yet He gives strength to the weary and those who HOPE IN HIM, the LORD will renew their strength... they will walk and not grow faint.  So we "walk onward" one step at a time placing our Hope in His Understanding which we do not always Fathom. We do know that God continues to go before us and gives us the Strength for today and Hope for tomorrow. 

Amy (for us all) 

3 comments:

  1. Focusing on God's character:
    "Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you." Deut. 31:6

    Brian Hyde

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  2. I will be going about my day and all of a sudden Kristi will come to my mind and I stop and pray for her. She is never far from my thoughts and my heart hurts for what you are all going through. I wish I could somehow comfort you all or at least help in some way. I just wanted you to know.

    "The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with singing." Zeph. 3:17

    I can't imagine how proud God is of Kristi and I know he loves her so much. In fact, all of you are such warriors!

    Hugs,
    Trina Cox

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  3. You are doing the best thing when you pray!! Everyone's prayers are the best gift......they hold us up and keep us going and protect us from discouragement!! Thank you!!

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