I apologize for our tardiness in getting this set up, but this first installment will be long as I will paint most of the picture of what Carter is dealing with, so welcome.
Carter Douglas Prince
Born: May 1, 2012
Due Date: August 3, 2012
Gestation Age (at birth): 26 weeks, 3 days
Weight: 2 lbs, 2 oz.
Length: 14 inches
Face: Damn Cute
Some of the good news...Carter is showing excellent respiratory prowess. Many preemies are intubated and on a ventilator for weeks at his age (and sometimes older). He kicked that the first night. He is on what is called a c-pap and it simply keeps a slight amount of air pressure in his lungs but allows him to breathe on his own. 99% of the time, he is breathing regular air...occasionally he needs a boost of oxygen by 1% or so just to saturate his blood with oxygen a little more.
His bilirubin is down today (maybe temporarily) so he is off of his jaundice spotlight. His blood glucose seems to have stabilized as well - which is good news for his kidneys. Also, after 5 days of waiting, he pooped! 3 times in a day! FINALLY!
Unfortunately like most preemies, Carter is prone to apnea. This is scary because he forgets to breathe sometimes and this causes a sudden drop in heart rate and blood oxygen. The good news with this is that he pulls himself out of these "spells" more often than not - sometimes he needs a little jostling to remind him to breathe. Either way, it scares his mother and I every time it happens. They have regulated this rather effectively using a split dose of caffeine morning and night - I call it his daily trip to Starbucks.
As anyone who has seen him in person will tell you, Carter loves flopping around his bed. He loves kicking his feet and flailing his arms. This is a great sign because it indicates that his brain functions are looking good.
Now for some of his challenges...
Carter is doing well but can use all the prayers he can get. First off, he got a blood transfusion last night. He received extra blood for a couple of reasons: they have been taking blood out for tests and he cannot yet produce his own blood to replace it, and he also (main reason) had a low red blood cell count. By having this low count, his body couldn't get the proper amount of oxygen to vital parts of his body. Infants give preferential oxygen treatment to the brain, heart, and lungs. In short, his body wasn't giving enough oxygen attention to his GI tract and other organs such as his kidneys. He did respond positively to this procedure.
Secondly, he has a rather prominent heart murmur that they will begin treating tonight (5/7) with indomethacin. We should know Wednesday if it worked or if he needs another round or if he needs surgery to close his PBA (valve that sends blood away from the lungs while in the womb that naturally closes in full term infants). This should help with his low blood pressure problem that currently exists.
He also is going to have a main line installed for intravenous medicine and feeding within the next day as the doctors do not like leaving his umbilical feeding line in for longer than 7 days. That will be followed by a brain scan to ensure no bleeding has occurred - the cure for which does not exist. All in all he is fighting his way through the early stages of life and needs all the help he can get.
One of the many things Carter has shown us is that he is a fighter and wants to live and be healthy and get better. He is a strong little boy that has surprised everyone who has heard his name and story. He has support from all over the country: both his mother and I have spoken with numerous family members and friends - some of which we haven't spoken with in a long while and some of which have family members that we have never met - and each of them have been touched by his story.
The outpouring of support, prayers, and positive thoughts has been overwhelming. We have the best family and friends in the world and we want each and every one of them to know how much we appreciate them.
We will be updating this blog regularly and posting pictures once we figure out how.
Thank you for reading!
Nick and Sandy
