Cardiologist (2/19):
Emma's VSD has continued to close and is getting smaller. It is still there, but her doctor feels it will close on its own. He gave her a 1 in 5000 shot in needing surgery so we were thrilled. He was so pleased that he stated he wouldn't need to see her back until she was four provided she was symptom free. She's come a long way from the 50/50 chance he gave her when it was diagnosed. It's remarkable to me to see how the human body can mend so many things on it's own.
Developmental Pediatrician (2/20):
Emma was measured for all her developmental levels to see where she was in developmental age versus chronological age. Here are her results - all vast improvements:
Gross Motor: 7-8 months
Fine Motor: 9-10 months
Cognitive: 9-10 months
Receptive Language: 16-17 months
Expressive Language: 17-18 months
It's very encouraging to see her language skills continuing to stay so close to her true age as it shows she is understanding more and more and being able to communicate more and more. I couldn't be more proud!
Pediatric ENT (2/28):
Emma had her tubes checked and her doctor removed the one in her left ear. That ear was clear and looked great. The right one, however, had some fluid in it but had no infection currently. He didn't want to remove the tube though as it was on the ear drum and could be uncomfortable for her. He left it and asked to see her back in six weeks to check to see if the fluid dissipated or if she was showing signs of an infection at that time. Before her tubes were placed back on August 9th of 2011, she was constantly dealing with ear infections but didn't show us any signs of discomfort or irritation so we weren't always aware of them unless the doctor was specifically looking for them. Since she has had the tubes, she only had an ear infection once when she contracted RSV. When we go back on April 11th, they will also do another hearing test.
Pediatric Neurosurgeon (3/7):
We arrived at Children's Hospital around 6:20AM and proceeded to quickly change her diaper and lower half due to a wardrobe malfunction that occurred in the thirty minute car ride. Once clean, we went to Admitting to sign all the paperwork and get Emma checked in. After that was complete, it was a short stroll past the trains to Radiology. After a couple more forms were completed, Emma and I went back for her MRI around 7:00AM. The Radiologist was very kind and said that the procedure would only take about five minutes once the machine started. We got her ears covered with two layers of protection and wrapped her up like a burrito. She kept one of her favorite balls with her and held onto it the whole time. Some of the noises were startling to her, but she took it like a champ and maintained her spotless record of no crying. She even started moving one of her legs to the beat of the pulses of the machine at one point. After the MRI was complete, it was going to be about three and a half hours before her appointment with her Neurosurgeon to review the images taken. During the break, Emma took a detour to Mommy's work and paid a quick visit to some of her biggest fans after eating her breakfast. When it came time for her appointment, she was starting to run out of steam. Her doctor told us that the shunt looked great and was still doing everything properly which was great news! He also said that the ventricles in her brain had actually reduced in size some so that was good news as well. Considering how well she is doing, the doctor said he didn't need to see her back for a full year, and if things continued to go well, she could start coming even less often starting at age five.
Pediatric Ophthalmologist (3/19):
It was an early morning for us both as we pulled into the parking lot before 7:00AM. Emma's doctor was happy to see that her nystagmus (rapid eye movement from side to side) had improved and that she was tracking much better than the last time he saw her. The examination reconfirmed that she was farsighted, but she now showed to have astigmatism in both eyes. He also confirmed my thought that she was using her left eye more and the right was weaker. In addition, her eyes tend to have an outward deviation referred to as exotropia. Her doctor recommended patching the left eye for three months for one to two hours a day to see if it helps to improve or correct her weaknesses in her eye muscles. We will see her doctor again on June 18th to reevaluate and decide if she will have surgery to tighten the muscles. Her doctor also referred us to the Retina Foundation of the Southwest for testing to get documented status on where she is now to help with future evaluations. That appointment is set for April 2nd and should be very informational.
All in all, although it was a very busy month for us, we are very thankful for all the positive news. We are looking forward to seeing continued success in her development and many more smiles on her sweet face.
