7/29/09 – 4:00 p.m. – Update from Brent

Sorry for the infrequent blog reports lately; there just isn’t much new with Dad’s condition to report. He’s just not improving much; it’s a difficult time. He’s been breathing a little bit on his own the last couple of days and opens his eyes a few times each day, but not much else. It’s hard on the family—and especially Mom—to see him like this.

We appreciate so much all of your love and prayers on Dad’s and the rest of the family’s behalf. Mom especially enjoys reading your comments in this blog, which we print out and give to her every day. Visits to the hospital are a little bit hard to accommodate right now, so your comments here are encouraged instead, and very welcome. And we all read them, so please, feel free to continue to communicate with us that way for now.

7/26/09 – 5:00 p.m. – Update from Brent

They’ve been moving the cmH₂O level around the past few days. They reduce it to a 5 for six hours or so to “exercise” his lungs, then move it back to 8 to give him a rest, and then to 10 at night to make it easier to sleep. Dad is otherwise stable, but still very little change in his responsiveness.

7/23/09 – 1:30 p.m. – Update from Dave

Dad’s cmH₂O level (amount of pressure supplied to help him breathe) was reduced to 5 today, so that’s a good sign. He also opened his eyes a few times and responded to Dave being there. Otherwise things are about the same.

Sorry for the short posts lately, but we are now in that really slow “wait and see” stage. Now that Dad is stable with all of the other “stuff,” his progress is literally measured in weeks, not days. If you don’t see a post some days, it’s just because there is really nothing new to report. Of course, I will always post any significant changes or improvements.

Thank you all again for your amazing love and support of our family through these trying times. It is very much noticed – and appreciated.

7/22/09 – 2:00 p.m. – Update from Sue

Dad has stabilized (as far as things like blood clots and fevers and infections and gout, etc. go) to the point where the doctors are talking about alternative care options. He is still on the ventilator, however, which limits his options.

With that in mind, the doctors have decided to insert a feeding tube called a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube into his stomach. He’s been on a feeding tube through his nasal passageway, which is customary for short-term use, but for those patients who require longer use of the tube, it is common to place the tube directly into the stomach through the abdominal wall. The surgery is simple and involves little risk or discomfort. The procedure itself only takes about 20 minutes.

Otherwise there is no change in Dad’s condition today.

7/21/09 – 1:45 p.m. – Update from Brent

Dad was slightly more responsive this morning. He opened his eyes once or twice and seemed to acknowledge us, even smiling at Mom. We are looking for small improvements and this is better than we have seen for a few days. We'll take every small improvement we can get.

7/21/09 – 3:30 p.m. – Update from Julie

Nothing much new to report today. Dad is stable and sleeping, his cmH₂O level is staying steady at an 8, so that’s pretty good. Otherwise not much change.

7/19/09 – 2:15 p.m. – Update from Steve

Dad’s had a few small problems within the last 24 hours or so, but relatively speaking, they are somewhat insignificant. He still has a small fever that they treat with Tylenol. He’s also had a bladder infection, which caused a blockage, so they removed the catheter and replaced it; that went fine. They were also concerned about the possibility of an infection in his kidneys, so they did an ultrasound, but that came back negative, which is good. Lastly, his feeding tube wasn’t quite in the right place, so they removed and replaced the tube. It’s where it’s supposed to be now.

Of much greater concern is that Dad is still mostly asleep all day. If and when the virus becomes less invasive and the swelling in the brain goes down, he should be more responsive. That’s what we’re watching, hoping and praying for right now.