03/27/2007

Well, we could use some prayer. Erik and I came up here today to witness extubation #3, which actually went beautiful and far smoother than the last, simply because Emery was pretty sedated. He is oxygenating well and breathing well and we all felt great about it. His chest x-ray looked as good, if not better than his ventilated chest x-ray, but here is the tricky part... Em's blood gas sucks! His CO2 is slowly on the rise. He is compensating. All of this medical jargon means that as long as Emery can maintain a pH balance of 7.25 or more, then he can have a high CO2 level. The average is about 25 to 35 for regular people. Chronic lung disease babies have a range of about 50 to 70. Emery averages in the 60s, but here lately they have been on the rise for some reason. His first one today off the vent was 78 and his last one was 81, but he has maintained his pH balance well. I don't know if I explained that well or not. As of now they are not putting him back on the vent until they check the 6 p.m. blood gas. I want to accept whatever may come down the line, but it is my honest heart's desire that Emery can surpass his time off the vent the last time. He's been off now for 2 hours and 15 minutes. Please, if you pray for Emery, pray that he gets good blood gases and that he can breathe on his own for a change. Thanks!