Keeping us on our Toes

Ambulance ride to U of M

August 18th, Gavin just wanted to make sure we are still paying attention to details and Oh boy are we!



I noticed facial and limb twitching, so we took him to the ER in our town.  They suspected a small seizure and transferred him by ambulance to U of M for a possible MRI or CAT Scan. Little did they know, Gavin had a scheduled sedated echo with his cardiologist the 19th, so they were going to try to get the echo done with the MRI sedation. We spent the night waiting, like we all do, in the ER for things to develop.  They scheduled the MRI for 8:30am on the 19th and were going to do his scheduled echo after the MRI.

Around noon, after recovery, Justin was feeding Gavin, when he noticed he became unresponsive ( but still breathing) it was like he went from crying to sleeping in a matter of a second, sleeping with his eyes open that is.  Good grief, we called for the nurse to help and she pressed the PANIC button, aka, Rapid Response and there was no waiting around for that! Before we knew it there was at least 20 RN, NP, DR, MA'S all surrounding our little guys' bed trying to figure out why his HR was skyrocketing. At one point his HR was 208. They administered a drug that temporarily slowed down his heart. They did that a couple of times. I believe it was the 2nd time when his HR dropped to the 70's but rather than rebounding it dropped even further. All I remember seeing was the number 48 and then the hallway. That was probably the scariest moment in my life!!!!! We had no idea what was wrong and with 20 people working over him it seems like no know knew what to do. I did... I prayed!

Finally, with what seems like an eternity, they were able to keep his HR at a normal level. They believe he was experiencing SVT. I will be googling that in a bit and get back to you on that. SVT isn't something they like to see at his stage of recovery. Typically, babies experience this closer to their surgery. My first instinct was that this was maybe a reaction to the anesthesia. We still aren't really sure why this happened, but he hasn't experienced it again.  

EEG Monitor (he looks annoyed doesn't he)

Currently, he is hooked up to an EEG monitoring system that consists of at least 15 wires/sensors attached to his head, monitoring his neurological waves and a camera to capture physical symptoms if they occur. So far, nothing remarkable has happened while on the test. 

After he was moved from the 6th floor in Peds to the 5th floor which is the Peds Cardio unit, Justin and I have been so much more comfortable. With all of the familiar faces and surroundings, I'm sorry to say it but it feels like home.  We were able to say in a room attached to his room last night which is 1st come 1st serve. Hopefully, we will get it again tonight.