Check-Up

Henry had a checkup yesterday at CHLA. He was seen by 4 doctors and they all agree he is doing great. They also removed his stitches. Henry's next appointment at CHLA is in a month.

Henry is home !!

We brought Henry home yesterday Afternoon! He is doing great. Shanna and I on the other hand forgot what it was like to get up every 2 hours. Henry is use to a very quick response time from the nurses at CHLA.

Henry is taking Tylenol when necessary for pain and is on one other medication to ensure his lungs stay clear. I find this amazing given he had heart surgery on Wednesday.

His only physical limitation is he can't be supported by his arms or lifted under his arms for 8 weeks. We are also working hard to make sure he does not pick up a cold as that would pose some risks to his heart over the next 8 weeks.

Henry will be making weekly trips to CHLA to see his cardiologist and to followup with the surgeons.

Henry is a minor celebrity with his brothers Ben and Will. I will post some pictures tomorrow.

Steve.

Much better now ...

Henry is doing very well now. His oxygen levels are very good. He is sleeping and eating well.

Henry is still in the ICU but I think we are now on a fast track to getting him home.

Steve.

Surgery Day

Henry went to surgery this morning at 7:40 am pst. They bumped him up in the schedule. He was out of surgery at 9:10 and back to ICU an hour later. At 2:40 they brought him off the ventilator.

He is recovering well and his oxygen levels look very good now. We appear to be back on track.

Steve.

Surgery Tomorrow

Henry will have surgery tomorrow. The doctors plan to loosen the band around his pulmonary artery. The surgery is scheduled for 2:00 pm PST.

Latest

Although Henry looks great and is eating well his oxygen levels continue to run low. On Sunday he was moved back to the cardiac ICU. The doctors are preparing us for another surgery to increase the blood flow to his lungs. Today they will place a catheter in his pulmonary artery to check blood pressures. If their assumptions are confirmed he will go to surgery in the next couple of days.

To increase the blood flow to the lungs the doctors can loosen a band that was placed around the pulmonary artery during the first surgery. Another option is to introduce a shunt to divert some blood flow from the body to the lungs. The surgery is not nearly as risky or invasive as the first surgery. They would need to open the chest again but it should not be necessary to stop the heart or put him on bypass. Since they will not be operating on the heart itself they should be able to close the chest during the operation and his recovery time should be shorter.

Thank you for keeping Henry in your thoughts and prayers.

Steve.

Getting stronger

Henry is getting stronger each day. His breathing and oxygen levels are much improved and he has a great appetite. Henry is back in the general cardiac unit on the 6th floor.

Two steps forward one step back ....

On Friday Henry was doing so well they promoted him to a general cardiac care unit on the sixth floor. He had a little trouble with his breathing and his oxygen levels began to drop so they brought him back to the critical care unit on Saturday.

He is doing much better today. Shanna asked that I post more pictures:

Last night defending his binky ...

First bath (last night) ....
Resting today ....

More to follow. Steve.

Turning the corner

Yesterday Henry had his chest closed and today he came off the ventilator. He is doing very well now and Shanna is able to hold him. They have reduced or eliminated many of the medications and Henry is alert when he is not sleeping. He opens his eyes and responds to our touch.

Thanks again for your thoughts and prayers for Henry. Steve.