Garrett: Post-Surgery Update

First and foremost, thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We have received a tremendous amount of love and support and we appreciate it all!

Garrett’s surgery went well and he is currently recovering and in good spirits. The reimplantation of his left ureter was successful and time will tell if this successfully corrects his urinary reflux. During the surgery, however, his doctor did notice evidence of previous reflux in his right ureter which she thinks he probably outgrew (and therefore did not show up on studies). She informed us that reflux on the right side could recur since that opening is now larger than the left and the urine will likely take a path of least resistance. Again, time and further studies will tell if this becomes the case but as of present, his right kidney function is good. His doctor also suspects a possible “kink” in Garrett’s left ureter (based on the difficulty of inserting the stent) which also didn’t appear on prior studies but may prevent ideal drainage from the left kidney (and requires a separate surgery to correct). This means that even if the reflux is corrected at the bladder, drainage from the kidney may be obstructed which can create the potential for further infection and prevent the growth of kidney that we were hoping for. We hope to know more after Garrett heals and further studies can be done.

In the mean time, Garrett continues to be a shining example of resiliency. Despite some initial anxiety about being “poked” by the “blood-sucking thing” (referring to IV placement) and having to be peeled off the furniture prior to going to the hospital (who can blame him?), he was made quite comfortable with happy drugs and has been kept pain free following surgery. Although he slept most of the afternoon following his surgery, we awoke a couple times long enough to make us smile with his Garrettesque remarks. When asked if he was feeling okay, he weakly replied “I’m all better, can we go home now?” And then fell back asleep. When he awoke a short while later we asked if he wanted anything (thinking he might reach for mom or dad for comfort and reassurance) and he weakly replied “I want my transformers.” And then fell back asleep. And, in a particularly sweet moment, he was looking at the glowing red light on his fingertip (from his oxygen saturation monitor) and he weakly reached up, rested his finger on my nose and whispered “Rudolph.” And then fell back asleep. On the schedule today is plenty of rest along with hours of playing with his assortment of Transformers, watching movies and even a trip to the playroom (see the picture)! We plan to be here until Saturday if all goes as planned.

Thanks again and I will continue to post updates as they come.