9/12 update - Still at UMass

 Here is the latest and greatest on Daddy-O as of this evening.

He texted us his what was on his chart this morning, there are a whole lot of things that they are addressing while he is there. I am not going to list them all here (if anyone wants specifics, text or email me separately and I can give you the list rebeccajrobbins@gmail.com or 831-840-0329). 

The main thing they are treating him for is Pleural Effusion. What does that mean??? I have NO idea, however the lovely nurse practitioner that met with dad last night explained it to him. He said that during open heart surgery, OHS (not to be confused with OSV all you village people 😂), they pump extra fluid into the chest cavity to keep it moist. Then they give you lasix following OHS to get rid of the fluid. Normally they give 6 days worth of lasix, but sometimes you need more. Dad's issue with breathing was that his lung cavity has been retaining this fluid and so his lungs couldn't fully expand.  Harrington hospital gave him a heavy dose of diuretic on Friday morning and UMass also gave him some once he was transferred there, with a possibility of having to put drains in for a day or two.

He had an ultrasound this morning (Saturday) and the good news is it showed that dad will be able to pee out the extra fluid. So basically, drink less (mom would not approve) and pee more. The doctors figure he should be able to make this happen over the next two days without the need for drains, YAY!!

That being said, dad will most likely stay at UMass until Monday so they can monitor the fluid levels and draining. I believe he will also have his 2 week post-op meeting with Dr. Walker while he is there (that's  convenient).

Dad was very happy to know that there was nothing that he did or did not do that caused this. He has been being pretty good about following the doctors post-op care instructions and this was not something he could have changed. Hopefully, by the time he gets out he will have his new CPAP machine so he can get some quality sleep as well.

I did speak with him this evening around 6:45 East coast time. He sounded really good. He had tomato basil soup and grilled cheese for lunch, and Mac and cheese and broccoli for dinner with pound cake for dessert. Not sure what the visitor status is, but he is in 3 west room 330A.