This morning when I called the hospital, the nurse told me Erik had a "pretty good night." He said they are weening him off sedation. He said Erik is breathing on his own now and they are working to get the ventilator out. He has developed a form of Pneumonia (starts with an A for you medical people; sorry, left the notes I took at work). The nurse said it is common and is caused when blood is in the lungs. Usually, someone will vomit and then inhale some blood. In return, he gets blood in his lungs, causing this very common form (for this type of injury) of pneumonia. He is being treated with antibiotics. The sooner they can get the ventilator out, the better for the pneumonia as this it is hindering his recover from it.
The idea of a tracheotomy has popped up. It is not as bad as it sounds. This would allow the ventilator to be removed. Erik would be more comfortable, the tube is small, he would be able to close his mouth, had have the neck brace removed. However, the nurse did tell me (not to quote him though-see quote to follow) "From my experience, I don't think a trach will be necessary" so hopefully, he has a lot of experience.
They will be taking some chest xrays today to monitor his condition.
The really good news is this. The nurse started laughing and said "he is definately awake, very strong, and purposeful." He said he definately knows where he is and wants to go. Just to clarify, I asked if he was attempting to get out of bed. He said no, but he was moving around a lot and was "very, very strong." He also said he can definately hear us.
I asked about if he opened his eyes yet and he said no, but he thinks its because the swelling is still too high. However, he did not seem concerned at all.
The nurse repeatedly told me "this is good news." He also said he was progressing. There didn't seem to be any sort of concern in his voice.
Dave told me yesterday, when he was in the room, the nurse was performing some reflex tests. She squeezed one of his finger tips and he pulled his hand away. He then used one foot to scratch his other foot, and the crossed his legs as if he was laying in a recliner watching football.
That is all I have for now. Today sounds like it is off to another great start. Looks like the next step is getting his ventilator out and that could be today!!!! -Rian
2 comments:
I am one of those medical people Ryan had mentioned. I can try to fill in some on the medical stuff. For those who do no know, I have worked in emergency medicine for 12 years, 8 of those as a Paramedic.
The pneumonia Ryan was referring to is Aspiration Pneumonia. As was mentioned this is very common for what Erik had to go through. Some of what I say may seem kind of gross, but I want to give you a good idea of what sounds like is going on. Aspiration pneumonia occurs when vomitis &/or blood get down your airway into your lungs. This is why the medics intubated (breathing tube)Erik. This serves 2 purposes. One to protect his airway from any further invaders (fluids). The other is to make sure Erik maintains adequate ventilation.
Hearing that Erik may be taken off the vent is great news!! As Ryan mentioned this will help clear up the pneumonia. With the ventilator, the air is being pushed into Eriks lungs. This allows for good ventilation & allows him to breathe, yeah obviously a good thing. When he breathes on his own, this allows the muscles & lung tissue to be able to pull that fluid out of his lungs, making it easier to take full & non labored breaths.
The Tracheotomy or trach is a tube that is inserted directly into his neck (his trachea). This is common for trauma injuries such as this. The idea is this is a more long term airway. This allows Erik to close his mouth & get the regular saliva to lube his mouth. This also reduces the irritation that the breathing tube in his mouth can cause. This looks wrong, gross & even midevil. I assure you it is not. You will only be able to see the head of the tube where it connects to the ventilator. There will be tape or some other type of devise to hold the trach in place that will cover most if not all of the wound. Depending on the type of trach used, he may be able to whisper some words, but that is VERY dependant on other issues. Strength & actually being awake are two obvious issues & can think of.
My heart is broken to see this happen to one of my best friends, as I am sure all of you feel the same. I was able to see Erik on Sunday after be got out of surgery. He was very swollen up like a balloon & appeared alien. I got to see him again on Tuesday & he looks great. Now keep in mind that I have seen these type of thing before, so I have a different perspective. The swelling was down & I could make out his facial features. I say he looks great, so that just means that there are improvements. All that fluid that was in his head has to go somewhere, so that will explain the leaking form his fore head & nose. This is normal drainage. It looks a little gross, but this is very good & part of the healing process.
Erik is a tough young guy. With all the improvements he has made, this is still going to be a very long road for him, Melissa & Tanner.
I am so happy to have such an incredible group of friends that are there for the Molines without any hesitation. Being 90+ miles away makes this very tough for me & Steph. We will be up to visit as much as we can. If there is anything we can do to fill in any details that need attention we are available. Much love to the Molines & all our friends.
Cory Penselin
I just left the hospital after talking with the nurse. It looks like they will be leaving the ventilator in for a little longer. They want to make sure everything is good as they won't be able to put it back in after it's removed.
When I was in the room w/ Erik, I saw him turn his head about 4 inches and back.
The nurse told me this morning, they asked him to sit up and he did without any assistance. Then they asked him to lay back down again and he did. He then moved around a bunch in an attempt to get comfortable. Apparently Erik is a side sleeper and he might be getting a little tired of sleeping on his back :)
Chest xrays were good, but showed he still has a lot of fluid on his lungs.
Overall, he's progressing as he should! -Rian
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