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Hi folks,
Just a quick update - I've run away for an evening and come home for dinner. genevieve was not amused!
We've been having quite a bad time (understatement!). Following surgery on 22nd August, genevieve threw up steadily for about a fortnight. Relatively well controlled for part of that using Ondanzatron (sp?) and Rinitidine (sp?). She then started to run a temperature which was thought to be a urinary tract infection initially until her back started oozing. Swabs taken of this came back as "growing nothing" and Geeve was put on a wide spectrum intravenous anti biotic. Blood tests onfirmed she had a bug of some kind and her surgeon said that, in spite of negative results, it just wasn't credible that there was no infection in her back.
Accordingly, she went back to theatre on 7th September to have the wound debrided - reopened and washed out and put back together (with clips rather than dissolving stitches). Surgeon was right - they found lots of gunge to wash out and identified a 'gram negative rod' which enabled them to identify the appropriate antibiotic (Septrin). Geeve lost a lot of blood during the second op and had to be given 6 units of blood and three of plasma (on top of the three she needed during her original op - I reckon she's had a complete oil change!) She was so much better virtually immediately after the second op and got back her sparkle straight away.
She's been making good progress since then - eating and drinking and had been up in her chair - and was switched back to oral antibiotics on Thursday night. Unfortunately since then she has twice spiked a temperature of more than 38C and today we have had more ooze from her back (for the first time since her second op) and she's been sick so i'm not sure we're out of the woods yet. Think we might be going back on to intravenous antib's.
long term we might have a problem as most of the bone graft was washed out during the second op: that's a wait and see problem.
Thanks for all your support. I'm about to go back to the hospital so may not be able to post again for a while. Please pray for us.
Lorrie
Just a quick update - I've run away for an evening and come home for dinner. genevieve was not amused!
We've been having quite a bad time (understatement!). Following surgery on 22nd August, genevieve threw up steadily for about a fortnight. Relatively well controlled for part of that using Ondanzatron (sp?) and Rinitidine (sp?). She then started to run a temperature which was thought to be a urinary tract infection initially until her back started oozing. Swabs taken of this came back as "growing nothing" and Geeve was put on a wide spectrum intravenous anti biotic. Blood tests onfirmed she had a bug of some kind and her surgeon said that, in spite of negative results, it just wasn't credible that there was no infection in her back.
Accordingly, she went back to theatre on 7th September to have the wound debrided - reopened and washed out and put back together (with clips rather than dissolving stitches). Surgeon was right - they found lots of gunge to wash out and identified a 'gram negative rod' which enabled them to identify the appropriate antibiotic (Septrin). Geeve lost a lot of blood during the second op and had to be given 6 units of blood and three of plasma (on top of the three she needed during her original op - I reckon she's had a complete oil change!) She was so much better virtually immediately after the second op and got back her sparkle straight away.
She's been making good progress since then - eating and drinking and had been up in her chair - and was switched back to oral antibiotics on Thursday night. Unfortunately since then she has twice spiked a temperature of more than 38C and today we have had more ooze from her back (for the first time since her second op) and she's been sick so i'm not sure we're out of the woods yet. Think we might be going back on to intravenous antib's.
long term we might have a problem as most of the bone graft was washed out during the second op: that's a wait and see problem.
Thanks for all your support. I'm about to go back to the hospital so may not be able to post again for a while. Please pray for us.
Lorrie
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