Update #62

I just got off the phone with Dave's parents, and he seems to be having an okay day today. Although they did not get updates on his platelets and white blood cells, the doctors VERY (are there any other ways to emphasize VERY?) cautiously told them that the drainage from the hole in his colon has decreased since yesterday. The extreme caution comes from the fact that the level of drainage can fluctuate from day to day, and the doctors reminded Den and Cherie that it will take three days to know if the meds are working.

For anyone who is interested, the medicine that they are using to treat the hole is called octreotide (also known as somatostatin), and it had been tried for cases similar to Dave's in the past with inconclusive results. One of Dave's doctors, Dr. Mack (who may be my new BFF - Best Friend Forever, for anyone who does not speak middle school), found a more recent study in which the medicine had been effective, so the doctors are trying it (not sure if he did the research on his own or if it was assigned to him, but I'm willing to give him the credit...). Assuming it won't cause Dave any additional harm (and I truly believe the doctors wouldn't use the med unless it was safe for him), in my opinion any activity is better than doing nothing. Tuesday is the day they will be able to tell if it is working - anybody else feeling a little impatient? Keep praying...

Beyond that, Dave was on the trach collar (where he is breathing pure oxygen on his own through his trach - i.e. no ventilator support) for over an hour today! According to his parents, he certainly didn't enjoy the experience and has no desire to try again this afternoon, but the doctors were impressed just the same.

Dave's left leg (the side where the blood clot is in his pelvis) is continuing to give him problems, but from what I understand from Den, the pain is coming more from the blisters caused during the swelling (which covered the entire surface of the top of his foot and are now popping) and less from the clot itself. We'll see if the pain improves in the next few days as the blisters heal.

In the midst of all of this, please be praying for Dave's spirits - I guess he seems to be a little bit down today. He is no longer able to be on antidepressants or sleeping meds because both of them have to be administered through his feeding tube, which the doctors aren't using, so be praying that his normally positive attitude and amazing personality will continue to shine through. With everything that he has endured, even just in the weeks that he has been awake, it is incredible to see him smiling, joking around and working so hard to recover, and I'm sure a lot of that comes from the power of your prayers and his awareness of God's presence, even when we can't be with him.

One more really phenomenal story - I was sitting at a friend's bridal shower yesterday afternoon and got a text from Darlene, the wife of the man who was hit by the drunk driver - "Tony alert. Following commands. We r on cloud 9." For the first time since his accident, her husband Tony is responsive, even sticking out his tongue on command. Such an answer to prayer! Thanks for thinking of them in the midst of everything that Dave is going through - they have truly become wonderful friends, and I know I was pretty teary when I got her text.

That's it for today. I hope you are all having a relaxing Sunday!

PS For anyone who cares, I think I found the study that Dr. Mack used to justify trying octreotide. I thought it was interesting... http://www.ispub.com/ostia/index.php?xmlFilePath=journals/ijs/vol6n1/fistula.xml