Dakota's Surgery

Wow! What a day :) It started at about 6:00 this morning....I got Dakota ready for the ride down to the hospital which was about a 25 minute drive. Surgery was scheduled for 9:15, but was about an hour late. Dakota was great in pre-op. He had a discussion about what was going to be done and got to see some of the equipment that was going to be used (the non-scary stuff). His "big bear" also got to have surgery with him and came out of surgery with his hip taped up and an IV taped to his hand. Poor bear....Poor Dakota :(

Surgery lasted just over two hours and let me tell you that was the scariest two hours for a mom to have to go through. One of the nurses would call once an hour and give me updates, which helped calm my nerves for about 30 minutes and then I would start to get worried again until I got another phone call stating all was well.

Once Dakota's surgery was finished and he got wheeled into PICU and I got to go see him. He was very groggy and in a lot of pain, but the nurses were great about seeing that he was taken care of. We had to keep an extra close eye on his lungs because he has asthma and even though his asthma is VERY controlled, it was still a concern. As he would wake up and realize he was in some pain, he would get upset which would cause his oxygen levels to go down. This happened a couple times, but the last time it happened scared the crap out of me. Red warning lights started going off.....things started beeping and the whole time Dakota's crying. I tried to stay strong, by keeping it together and trying to help him breathe. He was given some more morphine to help with the pain and then things went smoothly. I have never been so scared in my ENTIRE life.

Dakota has a incision on his right thigh that is about 4 inches long and he is in a knee mobilizer and a boot to keep him from moving his leg. Once things calmed down in PICU, he got transferred into our room. There he got moved to a different bed and all vitals were checked every half hour. As the half hours ticked by, his blood pressure continued to drop and he also ended up with a fever. I got very concerned once again when I saw his blood pressure hit 94/45. We were given some bubbles to promote blood flow and oxygen to the lungs. This helped raise his blood pressure a little bit more. Slowly things started getting better.

He managed to keep liquids down and a few bites of food, but just wasn't all that hungry. I can't really blame him though, all I'd wanna do to is sleep. But by about 7ish a lady came in and said that they were having an art project down in the play area and was inviting all the children to come down. Dakota seemed to be interested in that, so three nurses and myself worked to get him into a wheel chair with all of his IV's and monitors attached and I rolled him on down the hallway. He was able to color his own cardboard seahorse and then fill out a worksheet about his seahorse. His yellow/black seahorse has been named "Pony" and it's an 8 year old girl that likes to play, compete in races, eat small minnows and catfish and lives in a cave.

The first night was nothing but me getting in and out of bed. Every four hours we had a nurse in our room checking his vitals which got much better through out the evening.

It has been exhausting, not only for Dakota, but for me as well. I can't imagine being 8 years old and having to go through this, but he is a great little boy and is making the best of an unpleasant situation. I realized today as I waited around and watched him struggle just how much he is going to need me and I can only hope that I am able to provide the support he needs. All I can do is turn to God and pray that I have the strength to push forward even when things seem to be in reverse.

I want to thank all of my family, especially my mom and dad for their support and for helping me out. I couldn't have done it without you guys. I also want to thank all of my friends for their continued support, it does not go unnoticed. May God watch over you, like he has watched over us....

Hugs & Kisses

Des

Miracle League - 2nd Game

Dakota had his second and last baseball game with the Miracle League on Sunday, September 19, 2010. Once again he had a blast and really came out of his shell this time around. Dakota also won the "Captain of the Day" award.

He will not be able to attend the last two games as he is having surgery on Sept. 22nd, but come next season if Dakota is able to take part in this great organization, we would be honored.

Miracle League - 1st Game

The Miracle League is a baseball team for children with disabilities. Dakota is now a part of this team and his first baseball game was this past Sunday 9/12/10. He had a blast and can't wait for his next game this coming Sunday.

I am so very grateful that he was able to join this league and become part of a team. It showed him that just because he is in a wheelchair that doesn't mean he can't enjoy his favorite sport. It was also an eye opener for me. Normally, the league accepts children who have permanent disabilities, but they accepted Dakota anyway even though his is temporary. Seeing the other children out there with disabilities ranging from Polio, MS to varying degrees of Down Syndrome made me realize just how lucky we are. Even though we are having to go through this, my child will be able to run and play baseball without a wheelchair again at some point.

The league has only four games per season and the games last about two hours long. Each child gets paired with a buddy, to help them hit and catch the ball and to help run/wheel them to the bases. The buddies are not to do the work for them, but be more of a guide. Dakota's next game is on Sunday, September 19, 2010. This will also be his last game, as he is having surgery that next week and will be on bed rest. Even though it will be short lived, it's an experience I am glad we got to take part in.

JuSt a LiTtLe StReSsED

So I just got a letter today from Dakota's doctor who will be performing the surgery on Wednesday, that not only does Dakota have to be on bed rest for two weeks after his surgery, but he will be missing anywhere from 4-6 weeks of school. I don't know how I missed this tid bit of information, but alas I did! I thought he would only miss two weeks of school.

Let's just chalk up my lack of knowledge about this on StReSs, shall we???

Will keep you posted on how surgery goes, so keep a look out :)

Dakota's Diagnosis - Perthes

So our journey with Perthes started back in June of 2010. My son, Dakota, had been limping for about a month at that point and after trying everything I could at home to take care of it, I decided it was out of my hands and hauled him into the doctor's office.


They right away did a series of x-rays and didn't find anything to be wrong with the bone, so they sent us home. I waited another month. One night, while sitting on the floor watching TV Dakota tried to stand up and just winced in pain. "It's breaking" he said. The next day, I took him back in to see the doctor. And once again, another series of x-rays was ordered. This time, however, the bone showed a slight fracture. This is when Dakota's primary care physician diagnosed him with Perthes.


Perthes is a condition in children characterized by a temporary loss of blood supply to the hip. Without an adequate blood supply, the rounded head of the femur (aka the "ball" of the "ball and socket" joint of the hip) dies. The area becomes intensely inflamed and irritated. Although the term "disease" is still used, Perthes is really a complex process of stages. Treatment may require periods of immobilization and/or limitations on usual activities. The long-term prognosis is good in most cases. After 18 months to two years of treatment, most children return to normal activities without major limitations. Perthes' severity is graded on an A, B, C scale. "A's" are usually treated with just limitations on activities. "B's" are usually put on crutches (which we were told to use for a month) and have limited mobilization and "C's" are treated with surgery. We got sent to a specialist, who by the way is just super helpful and understanding. He ordered a MRI for Dakota that same day and had us come back about 3 days later to look at the scans. The scans confirmed that Dakota's entire ball joint was dead and the doctor classified his severity to be "between a B and a C". Because of Dakota's age (he is on the older end of the age range) and the B/C classification the doctor and I agreed it was in his best interest to have the surgery done to try and correct it before it collapses on him.


Surgical treatment re-establishes the proper alignment of the bones of the hip. The head of the femur is placed deep within the socket. This alignment is kept in place with screws and plates, which will be removed about a year later. Over time the ball joint will collapse and start to look a little like swiss cheese. After the collapse occurs, new growth will start to form and because of the plate that was inserted, the bone will grow correctly into the socket area. After he has been released from the hospital, he will have to be on bed rest for two to three weeks depending on how recovery goes. He won't be allowed to move at all. I will be homeschooling Dakota with help from a home bound teacher, so that he doesn't fall behind in his studies. Then, based on how well he bounces back from surgery, he will eventually get put in a wheelchair and then again eventually be put back on crutches while going through physical therapy to re-learn to walk.


So our surgery date is set for September 22, 2010. Until then, we have been given a wheelchair that he has to use, so that no weight is being put on his hip. We had our pre-op appointment this morning and that went very well. He is a very healthy boy, besides the Perthes! He is a trooper and hasn't complained once about having to live life in a wheelchair. I am so blessed, because there are so many out there who will never be able to live life without a wheelchair. My son, at least, will be able to run and walk and play sports again some day. I need constant reminders that, "This too shall pass!" We are a strong team, him and I and this will only make us stronger!


I have included pictures (below) to show what Perthes looks like before it's been surgically operated on and then after the operation.

Perthes on the right (left leg) - ball joint is flatter and outside socket area - this is a very severe case, Dakota's doesn't look this bad.

After the leg has been operated on and had the screws and plate inserted. You can see where they try and re-position the ball so that when it grows back it grows into the socket area.