Updates and Christmas

Out with the old and in with the new, right? Let's hope 2013 is a better year. We've got a new addition to our family on the way. I can't wait to meet her. After Friday's scan and the Maternal Fetal Medicine doc's recommendation we met with a pediatric surgeon at Primary Children's this morning. So far we've seen 4 different doctors and we've received different information and advice from each one of them. Today's visit gave a little more hope or confidence. Dr Black from Primary Children's told us that rarely will a CPAM cause an issue at birth. He told us we could continue on with our birth plan at Riverton Hospital. They would do a CT Scan a few days after birth, we would follow up with the surgeon a few weeks later and they would let us know what their game plan is. So, being as her CPAM is so small.. things should hopefully go smoothly.

As for the end of the year... Christmas with the kids went well. We had them on Christmas Eve and the first half of the day this year. It was a little harder this year to figure out what to get for the kids. I'm finding that the older kids get the more expensive they want. It's all about laptops, smart phones, iPads, iTouch's, and other electronic devices. One thing I tried to focus on this year were toys/objects that would promote activity or outdoor play. I would say it went pretty well. The kids were happy and were spoiled, especially by grandma and grandpa.

CPAM

As a follow up to the NuMom2B visit #3 post I figured I should fill you all in on what is going on with our little baby B. During our last visit with the NuMom study the Ultrasound tech noticed that there was a bright spot in the right lung. This was a concern but she couldn't give an explanation why because there was not a doctor around at the time. She scheduled an appointment the following day with a Maternal Fetal Medicine Dr at IMC.

I showed up at IMC at 1:00 and had a second ultrasound to evaluate what the tech had found the night before. I was seen by another Tech as well as the Specialist, Dr. Branch. Dr Branch spent a good amount of time in the room with me explaining what he feels is the proper diagnosis. We have been told that Brighton has a small mass of abnormal tissue in her lungs. This is typically known as a CPAM, formally referred to as CCAM. Congenital Pulmonary Airway Malformation's typically go away on their own before birth. Right now it is a very small mass and is not causing any problems. There is no fluid surrounding the heart or lungs.

The plan of action is to keep watching it. Every 2 weeks I will go into the Maternal Fetal Medicine office and a Dr. will do an ultrasound to check the size of the mass as well as to make sure there is no pressure being put on the heart or fluid surrounding it. If the mass continues to stay the same size I will  be able to deliver the baby as planned at the Riverton Hospital with Dr. England. If the mass grows, I will need to deliver at IMC where there is a NICU available. So, for now it's kind of a wait and see. My last ultrasound things had not changed much. It hadn't grown at all... they felt like maybe it shrunk a wee bit.  I have another ultrasound on Friday to check the status again.

NuMom2B visit #3

It's been a busy few weeks but I figured I'd catch up on the last visit for the NuMom2B study.  On November 29th I went to my third and final NuMom visit. They took me back from the waiting room, checked my weight and vitals, and had me begin the swabs. It was the same as the first two visits as far as lab work goes. 3 swabs, and a blood draw. After the labwork the nurse completed a brief survey with me and had me fill out a little paperwork of my own. I was very excited for this visit. I was told the ultrasound would be a 3D ultrasound.

Soon the ultrasound tech came in and began looking over our baby girl.  It was fun to see her a little bigger. The last time I had an ultrasound was between week 18 & 19. Everything looked great except for her right lung. It was showing up brighter on the ultrasound. The tech had me get up and move around so the baby would move, she checked again... still bright. She said it was a concern but couldn't give me a lot of information at the time. I would have to come back the next day to see a doctor in Maternal Fetal Medicine. They gave me a disc with the ultrasound and pictures. The 3D images were great. It was so fun to see our little bub that way. They also gave me a container that I would need to take to the hospital when I deliver. The container and it's contents are for collection of the placenta and cord blood for the study.

I'm grateful I participated in the study. I would never have found out what I know now about our little girl. Now we (hubs and I) as well as my doctors can be prepared for any possible complications that may arise during delivery. Hopefully, What they have found during this study can help them to learn more about the condition and aid in prevention in the future. I'll follow up with another post :)