March 31, 2010

Well it has been a long month for Gabrielle, Ashley, and I. We began the month with Gabrielle being admitted to the hospital for a 14 day round of IV antibiotics and we are ending the month 6 days into a 14 day round of Augmentin. Just to put a few number of things, this is Gabrielle’s 3rd 14 day round of Augmentin since the first of the year. In the month of March Gabrielle spent 21 days in the hospital. In addition, Gabrielle had 5 visits to doctors’ offices during March.

Today we took Gabrielle to the GI doctor and CF Clinic. At the GI doctor we learned that the test for Milk and Soy allergies came back normal, Praise God! We are extremely thankful that we don’t have be concerned with a milk allergy at this time. The second test we were waiting to talk to the GI doctor about was the stomach empting test. Gabrielle’s stomach does have a delay in emptying. Thoughts are that the delay is from the inflammation that was found in her small intestines when they did the EGD. If the inflammation goes away then the delay in empting the stomach should resolve also. Originally it was thought the inflammation was from a food allergy, however the only food she was getting at the time was milk based and the test showed no milk allergy. The inflammation in her small intestines could be a result of her continually being sick this year. One possibility is that there is an overgrowth of bacteria in her small intestines. So to treat this and hopefully eliminate the delayed empting, after finishing this round of Augmentin she will go on a round of Erythromycin. The Erythromycin is used to speed up the empting of the stomach. The GI doctor is also making a referral for a Food (Eating) Study which will result if a referral to a Food Therapist. We also talk about the G-Tube and Nissen Surgeries that began at the end of February. The GI doctor is not a fan of the Nissen surgery in general but feels it will be beneficial for Gabrielle to have when she has a G-Tube placed. He also still feels that Gabrielle needs a G-tube as soon as possible. He feels that by improving her nutrition it will also help resolve the stomach empting delay.

The visit to the CF Clinic today was a continuation of the G-Tube and Nissen surgery talks. After much prayer, research, and discussions Ashley and I have come to the conclusion that it will be in Gabrielle’s best interest to have a G-Tube placed. We still have not made the final decision about the Nissen surgery, however it is looking like there is a good possibility that it will need to be done at the same time as the G-Tube. There is still one more test that could be run that would give us a better idea about the severity of her reflux. The GI doctor, CF Clinic, and Surgeon are suppose to discuss this test and let us know how beneficial it would be to have done. Also, our decision will take into account the possibility of have to have a second surgery to have the nissen done if it is not done with the first surgery.

As far as timing Ashely and I would like to wait until the beginning of the summer to have the surgery done. However, the doctors feel Gabrielle is at a critical state right now and could decline rapidly if she has another big illness. This is because she does not have any nutritional reserves to spare when she gets sick. We will go back to the CF Clinic in 2 weeks so we can evaluate how she does between now and then and to give us an better idea of how the next 2 months would be if we waited.

Please pray specifically…
…that Ashley and I make the right decisions upon consultation with the doctors
…that Gabrielle starts taking her enzymes by mouth again
…that Gabrielle starts eating solid foods
…that Gabrielle starts eating more food each day
…that as a result Gabrielle will gain all the weight that she needs to
…that Gabrielle can get over her illnesses

Thanks,

Jeff, Ashley, and Gabrielle