Yesterday, we made another trek to Seattle for a follow up visit to the Transplant Clinic. These visits will continue for the rest of Shirley's life, but the interval between them will continue to increase as she gains strength and stabilizes her medications.
The core of each visit will be the same: a Pulmonary Function Test (PFT)--to check and see how her lung capacity is trending; a Blood Draw--primarily to check her Tracrolimus levels (one of the anti-rejection drugs); and for a visit with her Post Transplant physician, Dr. Lease.
Monday's visit also included a trip to the Interventional Radiology Department to have the port removed that had been left in place to facilitate blood draws and any IV medicines that may need to be delivered. Down from as many as eleven tubes connected at a peak, this last one finally allows Shirley to take a shower without having to tape a plastic cover of the port.
Shirley's PFT score was much improved from her most recent prior test and about equal to score at the time of her discharge when she had been doing multiple hours of therapy every day. We knew that the prior score was down due to back pain issues. While her back continues to be problematic, it isn't slowing her down much now and the PFT scores prove this out.
Dr. Lease reviewed her medication list and suggested stopping several drugs. Probably the most welcome of these was the Potassium supplement that has been very hard on her stomach.
On the way home, Shirley drove the last few miles--her first time behind the wheel in over seven months. This morning, she drove Joy to and from school. Another milestone and another level of independence that is being regained.
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