July 6, 2015 "Day 12"

Monday-Rayden must have known that his Daddy went back to work because he sure didn't sleep that well for me. He was up about 4 times. After an eventful night, Rayden went on a 'field trip' to get a CT Scan. Rayden has always gotten an MRI so I asked why we needed a different test. A CT Scan is best suited for viewing bones and only takes about 5 minutes. An MRI is for examining soft tissue and can take up to 30 minutes.

Dr. Elton came soon afterwards with the results. He said he doesn't wait on radiology to look at it, he looks himself. The CT scan showed we did not over drain the CSF, skull plates did not shift and everything looks good for surgery tomorrow. He plans to use the same incision sites in his scalp but may need a new one in his belly. He also said that the IV in his head would NOT have worked so I'm glad they didn't try again. He said Rayden may be in more pain after this surgery than revisions past because of reinserting the tubing. Hopefully he will bounce back quickly and can go home Wednesday.

A member of the anesthesia team came to get consent for surgery. She mentioned IV's are easier to place in the OR because the gas makes the veins pop out. The only problem is they may have exhausted all Rayden's veins. IF they can't get an IV they will try for a central line in the groan. IF that doesn't work either, they will abort the case until his veins heal. Oh, Please God, allow them to get an IV. We don't want to stay here any longer!

The nurse took a 4th CSF culture today as well. I suppose they are just being overly cautious.

Some of the UNC staff brought Rayden some toys to play with. He really enjoyed the lights and music the sea turtle made. He also liked that he could actually reach the toys on the mobile. (He can't reach his at home.)

Rayden will go NPO at 2 am, but can have Pedialyte until 4 am. I sure hope he doesn't wake up hungry and angry. The surgery to re-internalize the shunt is scheduled for 11 am tomorrow.