Surgery Shmurgery

While we've always admired Grace's trendsetting ways in the world of fashion and hair, we are even bigger fans of her latest trend.....the surgery-avoiding trend.  So far this year, Grace has avoided 3 surgeries that were predicted to be needed by her doctors.

Can you believe the good news?!

First was the heart catheritization.  As we told you in March, Grace had shown signs of pulmonary hypertension and they thought they were going to have to do a cath to measure and determine definitively if medicine was needed for it.   At her last echo before scheduling the surgery, her numbers looked normal and we avoided surgery.  Because of the concern over the pulmonary hypertension, her cardiologist suggested she come back in 3-4 months just to be sure.  So today, as we headed to her echocardiogram, we held on to hope that she still looked good.  

And she did!  

Her echo looked good, so she has finally been released to the every 6 month cardiology rotation.  This is a happy day!  After visits every 4 weeks the last half of my pregnancy, and continued frequent visits once Grace arrived, it will be nice to take a break from the echo rooms.  Our Gracer was a trooper going 16 hours without food and being out of sorts all day from a yucky-tasting-and-feeling sedation medicine.  

That medicine really is yucky!

She also managed to avoid 2 eye procedures.  She has nystagmus which is an eye condition common in people with Down syndrome where the eyes have a degree of uncontrolled movement.  This can affect vision, and cause those who have it to posture their head in positions that make the movement less and therefore their vision better.  The ophthalmologist thought Grace was doing this posturing 6 weeks ago and suggested surgery.  In addition, she felt that Grace's tearing might be due to an obstruction also common in Down syndrome, which to correct, involves a surgery a little more detailed than the typical tear duct blockage surgery.  She thought both could be done at the same time.  Like her cardiologist, she suggested a follow up just to be sure before scheduling the surgery.  That follow up was last week, and the doc was floored.  She said that all her concerns appeared to be much improved and that she was content to see Grace next in 6 months!

Go Gracer Go!