Update #56

Got to see Dave early this morning - never thought I could enjoy 5:30 a.m. so much. :-) He seems to be doing better and was quite talkative. Of course, one of the first questions he asked was why things have changed so much and why he can't have juice anymore. How I wish I could get him something to drink...

As of last night, Dave's blood pressure meds were at 100% strength to help keep his pressure up - this morning, his nurse had them down to 75%, and he seems to be doing great. His heart rate still fluctuates quite a bit, occasionally shooting up to 140 or 150, but it was very stable almost the entire time I was in there this morning and seemed very relaxed, even though he had just endured another dressing change on his side.

Although his leg is still very swollen, the pain is less severe, to the point that Dave let Dr. Alexander, one of the residents, touch it and move his foot a bit this morning, a huge improvement over the past few days. The doctors did a scan on his leg last night to make sure that his leg is not infected, and the scans only showed fluid build-up and cellulitis, most likely as a result of the clot in his pelvis (which, by the way, seems to be the only clot he has). Because of the clot, he is receiving injections of blood thinner in his leg, which is causing him to bleed from the wounds in his side. The bleeding is not serious, but he has received three units of blood since last night to help compensate for what he was losing.

According to Jessica, his nurse last night, Dave's blood tests came back positive for infection (two different samples), which we were fairly certain they would, and it seems to be a bacterial infection. As of right now, they are leaving him on the strong antibiotics that they started yesterday, which will help control the infection until the specific culture comes back in a day or two.

Overall, Dave is looking and doing much better than he was on Friday night or even yesterday. He is still very sick and will have to continue to fight, but it was good to see him awake, aware, and even smiling from time to time in spite of everything that he is going through. Keep up the prayers - I'll keep you posted.

Love from Knoxville,
Kendahl