background

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Some good news to share . . .

This will just be a quick post, and no photos--I've got a date with the DVR for Greys Anatomy! I wanted to pass along some good news to my faithful readers. Marley had a visit with the Cardiologist on Tuesday and we learned that the hole in her heart is very, very small. Her heart function is great and the amount of blood seeping through the tiny hole is insignificant. She is cleared for anesthesia now, which means that she can have her palate repair done. Her heart defect is something we knew about as soon as we received her file in March, but the cardiology report from China was outdated and many important parts of it were illegible and could not be translated. We took a big leap of faith, and luckily, it has turned out well. The cardiologist said that the hole will most likely close on its own by the time she is school aged, and even if it doesn't, she should not need surgery. Big sigh of relief on that!

We saw the Neurosurgeon on Wednesday about her sacral dimple and her head shape. More good news there--he doesn't believe that either are major issues. He said that her head shape (flattened in back, prominent forehead) is most likely due to laying on her back in a hard crib too much in China, which is what we had thought. She doesn't have any of the typical symptoms that go along with spinal issues, so he thinks the dimple is also a non-issue. However, he is scheduling her for a sedated MRI and CT scan to be sure that everything is okay. Because she has three 'mid line' issues (cleft palate, heart defect, sacral dimple), and because we have zero family history on Marley, we need to be looking very 'thoughtfully' (in his words) at her little body.

We had plenty of time to prepare ourselves for her cleft palate surgery and for a possible heart surgery, but we were not aware of any head or spine concerns until we met Marley in China. It has been tough to swallow all of this new information, but we are taking it a day at a time and are very hopeful that the upcoming scans will rule-out any real reasons for concern.

She is making such rapid progress that it continues to amaze us. It is really hard to believe that we met her just 3 1/2 weeks ago. Everything about her has changed so quickly. Her hair is no longer as coarse, her skin has a very healthy glow, she has gained a few ounces, her balance is 150% better. . . it is like watching her turn from a baby to a toddler in a couple weeks time.

3 comments:

Amy said...

I am so glad that her heart is fine! What a huge relief you must feel! It sounds like she has a great doctor. The kind that isn't too worried, but still wants to make sure everything checks out. That's the best kind!!

Lisa said...

Great News Holly! I am praying for you guys!!!!

Blessed Family said...

Hi Holly, (another BAAS family) My son has a sacral dimple also and a heart problem. We found out the dimple is fine and not a spine problem My son also has a flat head but they say that is just from the crib. He had TOF surgery in September and is doing so well. Your little girl is adorable (as well as your other kids!). Best of luck to you Heidi