Some Bummer News

Illustration of Pleural Drainage Catheters

Day 6 of my dad’s hospital experience was a little bit better than previous days, to say the least.  Today was the first day he didn’t wear his hat!  That’s because he was able to wash & dry his hair.  He got a clean gown, clean PJ pants, clean socks...  It was nice for him to feel presentable again.  AND he was able to sleep better than he has so far, which is a blessing from God!

Very early in the morning his cardiologist, Dr. Kelley, paid him a visit.  He was not bearing the best news.  Bob has a telemetry monitor attached to his body with leads.  The monitor is very sensitive & very accurate.  Somewhere on the 2nd floor of the hospital, there are nurses whose job is to continually watch computer screens that display the activity of a patient's vitals via the telemetry monitor.  Overnight, Bob had several “flutter” episodes.  His heartbeat was irregular.  Because of those “flutter” incidents & the occurrences of some v-tach episodes, he put an external pacemaker on Bob & scheduled him to have a short surgical procedure on Monday to install a permanent pacemaker.  This news was a bummer, since Bob really wants to get out of the hospital!

Connie spent the morning with him, working away on her computer trying to get everything ready for the opening of Parkview Regional (aka the Emerald City).  I got there at around 2:00 & I brought some contraband with me.  KFC fried chicken breast & mashed potatoes with gravy, baby!  My dad really enjoyed having food that actually tasted good.  Just before Connie left, Dr. Sowden came into the room.  He also had some discouraging news. 

The fluid from Bob’s pleural space is continuing to drain at a significant pace.  At this point in his recovery, he should be draining less than 100 cc of fluid in an 8 hour period.  He is currently draining over 300 cc of fluid in an 8 hour period.  This causes Dr. Sowden concern.  The longer the chest tubes are left in, the greater risk there is of infection in his sternum.  Since there is still excess fluid in Bob’s pleural space, Dr. Sowden plans to install pleural drainage catheters on both sides of Bob’s chest.  I’ve placed a picture of what this will look like so you can get a better understanding of the procedure.

The procedure is performed under general anesthesia. Dr. Sowden will tunnel a chest tube into place under Bob’s skin & into the pleural space.  The fluid accumulated in the pleural space will drain through the chest tube & into a bag taped to Bob’s side.  Every so often, a home health care nurse will remove the fluid from the bag.  This will continue until fluid ceases to be produced & drainage resolves. 

The problem with excess fluid build-up is more concerning to the family than the pacemaker is.  We know why he needs a pacemaker.  We don’t, however, have any idea why Bob continues to create & carry excess fluid in his pericardium, his lungs, his ears & other spaces.  No doctor has been willing or able to get to the root of this fluid problem.  This is a matter that we really would like you to pray about.

Since Bob isn’t going home on Sunday like he would prefer, he will be in room 354 at Parkview Main & would LOVE to have some visitors!  He is much more able to cope with having visitors as the anesthesia dissipates from his body & his mind becomes more clear.