Surgical Success!! Bring on the tubes, wires and lines.

Remember that scene in the Matrix where Keanu Reeves takes the "red pill" and wakes up in the real world. After waking up, he finds himself in a little pod connected to all kinds of tubes and wires. That scene basically begins to paint the picture of Shepherd's current state; however, Shep has way (or as Keanu would say waaaaaay) more tubes, wires and lines attached to him. But please don't worry about our little guy. All the tubes and lines are standard procedure for someone recovering from heart surgery.

After getting Shep to the hospital at 6:00 am and getting him all checked in, the anesthesiologists took Shep into pre-op around 7:45 am yesterday morning. What's interesting about surgery in the digital age is that when Vicki and I checked Shep into the hospital we were issued a pager that would receive surgical text updates to help keep us informed. Now, I know what you are thinking, how helpful can "OMG, Shep is like totally cute and doing so good :-)" or "LMAO, Shep just farted" be to a parent. Fortunately, the texts we received were far more no-nonsense and medically oriented. Vicki and I received messages letting us know when the first incision was made (8:55), when he was placed on the heart and lung bypass machine (9:35) and when he was taken off of it (approx 11:15). Despite their lack of sugarcoating, I am a big fan of the text message system. One thing I have come to realize over the past few months is that when your child is having any type of medical exam or procedure performed on them, silence is excruciating. Though the messages are brief and delivered via pager, the texts help break up the four plus hours of deafening silence. However, if the hospital asks us for feedback, I will be sure to tell them that a "ur kid is 2 cute," thrown in every once and a while couldn't hurt.

Once we received the final message letting us know that Shep was off the bypass machine, we were taken to a room to meet with Dr. Jonas. This meeting actually takes place before Shep is out of surgery as other members of the surgical team are tasked with finishing the basic maintenance and closing the chest. During our meeting Dr. Jonas informed us that Shep's cardiac anatomy was more complex than he originally anticipated. Even though Shepherd had multiple echocardiograms, there is really no substitute for seeing the heart in person. Shep's complex anatomy forced Dr. Jonas to alter his surgical plan and make adjustments in the OR. However, in the end, it appears the surgery was completed successfully (we will know for sure in a day or two when we can do a follow up echo). Dr. Jonas was able to patch the hole, correctly route the blood and shave off the excess muscle. The complexity of his cardiac anatomy, which made for a technically difficult surgery, has served to reinforce our decision to switch to Dr. Jonas. Though it is possible Shep would have been fine no matter who did the surgery, there is a chance that a less experienced surgeon wouldn't have been able to perform the correction given Shep's unique anatomy.

Now, with the surgery behind us, our attention turns to recovery. Vicki and I were finally able to see Shep around 3:00pm yesterday. Our little guy is in a cardiac intensive care unit, which is a specialized unit of the hospital with just 13 beds. The level of attention patients receive in this area of the hospital is nothing short of amazing. Shep is followed by a team of CICU doctors, the cardiothoracic surgery team, his own cardiologist, and his own nurse 24/7. At first glance, this level of care may seem like overkill, but Shep's condition changes by the minute. At this critical stage Shepherd requires constant attention, his breathing, blood and chemical levels are being checked around the clock and his medications are adjusted continuously throughout the day. This attention to detail and level of care is all done in an attempt to strike a delicate balance in his heartbeat, blood pressure and respiratory rate. And as of right now, that balance is being struck. Shep's blood pressure remains strong, his heart rate continues to fall and with each passing hour he breathes more on his own.

Like any surgery, the first 24 hours are the most critical and we are now past the 24 hour mark. Shep is a rockstar and he improves with each passing minute. We will have more news to report after the next echocardiogram, but in the meantime, he is doing wonderfully. Thank you to all for your thoughts, prayers, positive vibes, good feelings, positive energies, loving sentiments and Zen. Shep thanks you too!

PS Since this isn't a terribly happy subject matter I am including a slideshow of the boys Christmas portraits to help brighten everyone's day. The Title is Christmas is Exhausting...Enjoy!

Love,

-The Brittons