neurotwitch

out of the icu now

Stanley was moved to room 738 today (Sunday). His neck tube was removed, and the blood pressure tube—a lot less plastic hanging out of various holes. He can receive calls and visitors and Monday I will take his laptop in so he can get email (hope it works—it’s supposed to).

Thanks to Sharon’s comment, I was able to be assertive about getting Stanley’s pain managed better (knowledge really is power!) His nurses today were good about making sure they showed up on time—if it goes as well throughout the night and morning I’ll be relieved and won’t kick up a fuss unless I have to. And I told the nurse to note in his chart that he is NOT to be gotten up at 6am to sit in a chair like he was last time.

We don’t know yet if they’re going to operate on the calf artery to remove that clot. And I don’t know yet how long he’s going to be in—he hasn’t started walking yet though he did sit in a chair today. He would like to walk so he could use the bathroom instead of the piss bottle. I’m relieved he’s doing better this time—I was worried that he wouldn’t be able to handle a second surgery is just over two years but, other than the problems he’s been having, he’s damned healthy.

So far, the valve broccoli is negative for Bartonella (cat scratch fever bacteria). It’s not definite yet, but it’s looking that way. We will both be very relieved if the kitties are exonerated, but now that we know that Bartonella can cause valve problems and potentially death, we’re going to be very careful. I still have to find out if there is a test for Bartonella the vet can give our cats and if there is a way to eliminate it from them if it is present (update: the vet can test for it, but it’s expensive. Cats can be treated for it too, but it’s tricky.) I know it’s passed from cat to cat via fleas—but our cats are indoor kitties now so maybe they’re negative and it won’t be a problem ... I want to talk to Dr. Lobo about it as he has a prosthetic valve and a cat.

I still suspect the broccoli started when the staph was introduced during the initial operation and just lay dormant for a while. We know that it was throwing clots at a minimum of six weeks ago since that’s when Stanley got the unending charley horse in his left calf. It could’ve been the infection Stanley got last December/January that triggered it. We’ll probably never really know the root cause.

Okay, headed to sleep.

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