Wednesday, May 30, 2007

CT Scan Results

We also saw the neurosurgeon. His CT scan looked great, but he still wants to keep an eye on Toby's head. Sometimes a shunt can be malfunctioning and it won't show up on a CT scan. His fontanals (or soft spot on the top of his head) were bulging for 12 days. He also seems to have a pocket of fluid above his myelo site on his back. (The myelo site is where his spinal column was splayed open, which they closed the day he was born.) About 2 days ago, Toby had some major dirty diapers - like 4 in twenty minutes, and since then his fontanels have been soft and more sunken...so there is something to the idea that when his bowels are full of air they can't absorb the fluid from the shunt tubing (which ends in his bowels and is where the fluid drains from his head). The doctor also mentioned that a viral infection or urinary track infection can display symptoms like a shunt failure, but actually not be the shunt. He doesn't have a UTI, but could have a viral infection because he's been running a slightly elevated temperature and had lots of dirty diapers. Bottom line, The doctor wants to stay on top of things, and we will see him again next Wednesday for a CT scan and to be checked. He still is acting great, and like I said today his fontanels felt great; nice and soft and sunken in.

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