LIFE-THREATENING Infection & Blockage

I wish I had something good to say this morning.
We once again find ourselves needing another miracle (two) for Denise & the doctors.

In last night's post, I said that pseudomanas bacteria is back again. They assume that's what it is (what was found was a gram-negative rod... still need to wait for it to grow more). It was originally found in the uterus, ab fluid, and now sputum & blood... it's systemic now. The problem is that it's very resistant to antibiotics. A few weeks ago I mentioned that there was only one antibiotic that could be used. If my understanding is correct, the bacteria has adapted itself to overcome the antibiotic. The choices of what to give her so she doesn't succumb to this infection are pretty slim, and the side effects are severe. We're having to wait to be sure of the exact infection, and wait for the infectious disease doctors to figure out if there's anything that can be done. We've gotta find something to combat this.

More bad news is that yesterday's CT scan of the ab revealed that the barium contrast got into the stomach and small intestine, but didn't go to the large intestine. This, along with Denise's vomiting, points to a blockage. We don't know yet what's causing the blockage. The doctor needs to call a surgeon, but Denise is in very bad condition and not a good candidate for surgery. On a side note, because of the blockage, the doctor thinks that Denise is starting to dehydrate, since the large intestine isn't getting anything from which to extract water. They've stopped the gastro tube feeding and increased the IV feeding to help her out.

Denise has been carried through other scary moments in this ordeal. In my mind, this one ranks among the top, even though there's a wait involved. She has made progress; nurses coming back after a week or so off have commented on how much better she gets. But if nothing can be done for the infection, and the risk of resolving the blockage is too great, we stand the chance of losing Denise. We have to wait for several doctors in different fields to huddle and figure out what to do next.
Pour on the prayer.

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