Doctor Day Cont'd

When we went back to the doctor's office, he was going to see two different doctors. One doctor is a kidney specialist, the other is the doctor that did his surgery to remove the valves that he had when he was born.

They got his weight, height, and blood pressure. His blood pressure was unusually high. It was something like 129/92. Not only did it surprise us, but it surprised the nurse. Holly was getting kind of worried about it, especially since I have high blood pressure. The nurse said that he may have moved a little to much or something, and that we could try again a little later.

Then it was the kidney specialist's turn to look him over. Her name is Dr. Lavelle. She also gave us the results of his ultrasound and blood tests. She said that the left kidney hasn't grown. She said that it still looks to be the same as it was previously. She then told us that his right kidney had grown. And that so far it looked like it didn't have any damage from the reflux, but we'll have to keep bringing him in to monitor it.

She then proceeded to tell us that if his kidney's don't do their job, that in about 18-20 years, Caden could be on dialysis or have a transplant. She did also say that if the right kidney grows enough to make up for both kidneys, that he may not even have that. She said that there are a lot of people living normal lives with one kidney; many don't even know it.

Normal kidney processing is between 80 and 100 mL per minute. (I think that's what the doctor said.) Caden is currently at 80 mL per minute. So, if it stays in the normal range, he'll be just fine. She also commented on his blood pressure. She said that children with kidney problems tend to have higher blood pressure. She wanted to try his blood pressure again, because if it is high, he'd have to be put on medication for it.

Once she left, we thought it would be a good time to try his blood pressure again. Was this ever a mistake. We tried about 8 or 9 times, and Caden just screamed and kicked. (He is so strong now.) We just thought we'd give up for now.

Dr. Donovan came in and looked Caden over, but he still couldn't feel his testis. He decided that we should try to give Caden some hormone shots to see if his testosterone levels spike. If they do, he has testis and he will schedule surgery to have them pulled down. If they do not, then he doesn't have them and we'll know for sure that he won't be able to have children.

Of course the news of Caden possibly needing two surgeries upset us, but we know it would be in his best interests. Neither surgery is for sure. The kidney surgery won't be for almost 20 years. And that's even if he needs that. The surgery for his testis, we'll find out in about a week and a half. He starts the shots on Monday, January 23rd, 2006. He'll have them Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He'll have blood drawn Monday morning before the first shot, and then Saturday, a day after the last shot.

So, please cross your fingers. This is the surgery that we actually do want him to have.



Until Next time, I continue to ask for and thank you for your prayers.