Today we saw the neurosurgeon to get the MRI results. It was a long day because Mr. B. is sick, and I had to take John to the pediatrician. He has been coughing horribly for over a week and I wanted to make sure he didn't have bronchitis or something. He got a clean bill of health except the cough. I rushed home, gulped down some lunch, and off we went to the next appointment. Mr. B. was well enough to go, but I drove and he didn't look very lively. We were there for several hours, going over all the MRIs for both kids.
Therese is the easy one. She has no hydrocephalus and for now we will just do yearly MRIs. This one will be our baseline. The neurosurgeon said that kids with spina bifida all look like they have tethered cords, so unless she has symptoms of it getting worse as she grows, we will leave it alone and monitor it. She does have scoliosis, which we knew, and Chiari Malformation, which we didn't. She was swinging from the handle of her stroller and then later managed to fall out when we were looking at the MRIs. Notice that she didn't fall while doing tricks, but while she was sitting in the stroller. Now she has a big bump and scrape right between her eyes. There is no stopping that girl. I need to get a video of her gymnastic act with the stroller. It is pretty funny, especially when she says, "wheeeeee!"
John's shunt is basically useless and they are going to put in a new one as soon as possible, which should be next week. His whole spinal cord is divided with fluid pockets and his ventricles in his head are enormous. The shunt he got in China as a baby has been blocked with scar tissue and is barely even in the ventricle anymore. The main vein in that area has stuck to the shunt probe and is pulled off to one side. Because of that, they will just put in a completely new shunt on the other side. It should be a fairly short and straightforward surgery, and if all goes well he will only stay one night in the hospital. The neurosurgeon said that it was a very good thing we insisted on going forward with the MRI in spite of his cough. I'm so glad we got him home when we did, so he could have this surgery here in the US, and with a family to be with him. Hopefully a new shunt will help his balance improve. He was crying with frustration a few weeks ago when he tried to kick a soccer ball, and fell down almost every time. He is such a sweet guy and we want him to have the best functionality he can.
We have an appointment on Wednesday at urology for Therese, and then on Friday we will drive out of state to get a second opinion on her feet, so this week is even busier than last week. January is a very busy and stressful month so far, and at least for the next few weeks it is certainly not going to slow down. Therese may be in casts after we meet the Ponsetti-trained orthopedist on Friday, and that could make her a very frustrated little girl. I'm sure she will figure out how to get around, in spite of casts from her toes to her hips. We have a lot of medical decisions to make so we would appreciate prayers for wisdom and for everything to go well, especially for John Francis's surgery.
