Successful Surgery!

Maci is back from surgery and it went well.  They WERE able to do everything laparoscopically so this means she did not have to have her belly cut open.  Maci said again that Dr. Eubanks has mad surgical skills!  She also had a great surgery fellow, Dr. Sims, who talked to us after surgery and was great.

Dr. Sims said the Nissen went well, that she had plenty of stomach to pull up over the end of the esophogus.  (I guess Maci gets the "plenty of stomach" from me!).  Here is what the procedure looks like before (left) and after (right).

They successfully repaired her one sided inguinal hernia, her umbilical hernia and put in her g-tube.  The tube options were either a "mushroom" tube (Bard Button) or a mic-key button.  She has the mic-key button.  Had she gotten the mushroom tube they would have let it heal for 3 months and then changed it to the mic-key button.  One future step eliminated! 

First pic is the mushroom tube and the second, a mic-key button.

They call it a mushroom tube because the end that holds it in place

inside the stomach looks like a mushroom.

The mic-key button sits more flat, closer to the stomach.

The plan is to resume dialysis tomorrow night.  They will begin her fills with a smaller volume, approximately 50 or 60 mLs (she was up to 90 mLs) to allow the g-tube to heal.  After a few days, they will begin increasing the volume of her dialysate (dialysis fluid) again.  She is on fluids and will hopefully be able to resume feedings at some point tomorrow or the day after.  Since she has the g-tube/mic-key button, any feedings that she doesn't take by mouth will be sent through the g-tube.  No more tube in the nose!

 

Maci is currently resting, seemingly peacfully.  She was given some pain medication to limit her pain and keep her comfortable.  She is on the ventilator and the surgeon was to speak with the nurse practitioner on when they plan on beginning to wean her off.  It could possibly be tonight, otherwise it will be tomorrow.  They said the Nissen procedure makes the stomach sore and so full lung expasion during breathing is sometimes painful so the ventilator just aids in the breathing process until some of the pain has subsided. 

Thank you all SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO VERY MUCH for the prayers for Moo and for Rick and me as well.  We appreciate them SO much.

Me loving on Maci before surgery.