Heart Cath #2

Heart Cath #2 is done!  🎉

We checked in yesterday afternoon so that Margaret could have her pre-op testing done and then stay overnight to get some fluids.  It was important to make sure that she was well hydrated for this procedure.  

Ready!

Pre cath snooze...

The original plan was to get started right away this morning at 8:30am but unfortunately things got delayed a few hours because there was an issue with the humidity in the operating area on the floor.  Thankfully, Margaret's procedure just got pushed back a few hours unlike a couple of other procedures which got moved to different days.  

After -- so confused

Margaret was taken back around 10:45am.  She was definitely not happy to be in someone else's arms and screamed the whole way there right through the CVICU.😟  
This morning we were able to connect with the cardiologist who would be doing the heart cath and we discussed the risks and benefits of what they hoped to accomplish today.  We were reminded that Margaret's Pulmonary Arteries are really quite small and there was the possibility of only being able to address one of them during today's procedure.  The plan was to balloon the arteries and see how much they could increase their size and place stents if needed in order to keep them open wider.  Remember, she has had some work done with these and there is scar tissue that makes them a little tougher to work with because it causes the tissue to be more stiff (like what you experience with any type of scar tissue).  The decision to coil any of the MAPCAs would be made during the cath after they could determine wether or not necessary for now.  Right now the #1 priority is to address the pressures in the right and left ventricles and get those to be at a more desirable "balance".  

At 2:15pm we got the call from the nurse that the procedure was done!  Things went much quicker than anticipated, but results are promising and we are happy!

Here's what we know about what the cardiologist was able to do during this heart cath...

• Margaret's left Pulmonary artery was ballooned and a stent was placed.  This artery went from around 3mm to around 7mm -- Awesome!  Once this was done the pressures on each side of her heart already looked better!  Great news!!
• The right Pulmonary artery is smaller than the left and a bit more difficult to work with.  The cardiologist was able to balloon it and it went from around 1mm to around 2.5mm -- too small to make it worth it to put a stent in at this point.  
• We will have a follow-up appointment next week sometime and talk about the results of the Cath and do a quick check on how Margaret's doing since discharge.
• In about 6-8 weeks we might have to get a CT scan to get more images of Margaret's heart -- she had one of these done when she was born.  It gives the team good images to make a plan.  
• The pressures between her left and right ventricles look much better having intervened with her Pulmonary Arteries.  They are not where we hoped they could be, BUT they are much better and her heart should like the change.  😉
• Possibly the next heart cath could be as soon as before the New Year. 
• The overall reality is that Margaret will have many heart catheterization procedures but this is okay because these are much easier to recover from than open chest and open heart surgeries.  We hope to not have to put her through another big surgery until it is time for her Pulmonary Valve to be replaced -- we are estimating that to be around 2 years old.
• It was decided not to attempt to coil any of Margaret's MAPCAs at this time.  They do not seem to be causing any issues and one larger one actually seems to be helping pick up the slack for her teeny right PA.  

Our evening has been mostly uneventful.  Margaret even was able to jump back into full feeds at 8pm after doing great with a full feed of Pedialyte.  Feeds always stress us out because we know she still struggles with bad reflux and we hate to see her suffer with that on top of being sore from her heart procedures.  

We've been a little late to post an update because we have been so tired and really Margaret has been happy and wanting to play so all of our attention has gone to entertaining her.  We are very much looking forward to being discharged tomorrow!  

SO happy but SO exhausted.

Thank you for the love, prayers, good vibes, etc.  We continue to be thankful to have such a huge village of family and friends surrounding our family as we continue to navigate the world of Congenital Heart Defects.  As tough as this can all be, we continue to be in awe at how blessed we are! 💖