Baby Eagan - NICU Day 2 - First Touch!

Today is a great day! Eagan is 36 hours old and doing fantastic. Typically, 24 hours with micro-preemies is called the "honeymoon period" and we are officially past that point.

To make today even better, I was so blessed to be able to touch my baby for the very first time! I had no idea that was even an option right now! The bilirubin lights make the picture look like a disco floor but I cannot describe the feeling of having my little boy wrap his fingers around mine for the very first time! Such a little miracle!

In the scrub room of the NICU, where I wash up to the elbows so I do not pass any germs to Eagan, there is a small bin with little quilted hearts.  After I wore the heart for a while, Eagan's nurse placed the hearts in his isolette so that he can always have the comfort of Mom even though I cannot always be right with him.

Here is a run-down of his current status:

Weight
1 lb 15 oz - Eagan is UP an ounce!!

Length
12.5"


Breathing
A ventilator is still helping Eagan breath so he is not using his energy and burning excess calories. His ventilator had to be increased to 60% oxygen overnight last night. This morning it was down to 22% and now we are back down to 21% which is just great!


Vitals
Eagan's vitals have remained steady and stable all day from hour to hour!

Vein Access
An umbilical arterial line was placed just like it was an umbilical cord. This gives doctors easy access to check blood pressures, take blood, and administer medications without sticking Eagan with needles.

An umbilical vein line that was not in the proper position yesterday was adjusted today and is now in the perfect position.

Medications
Eagan is now only getting Ampicillin but showing no signs of infection.

His blood pressure is running low currently so he is getting a medication called Dopamine to help raise his pressure. Last night, the Dopamine was at 20 micrograms. This morning he was weaned down to 12 micrograms and is now at 11 micrograms and having no issues!



Eagan is on a very low dose of morphine, just to keep him still and comfortable.

Nutrition
I am pumping breastmilk for Eagan. He was given 1 cc of breastmilk today and had absolutely no issues with the feeding! He had no residual in his stomach which means all the milk was digested. Eagan is still getting vitamins through his umbilical catheter and now lipids (a healthy fat) have been added.

Jaundice
Eagan's jaundice levels are 5.8 and he has been under the bilirubin lights all day. The bili lights should also help reduce some of the bruising that was caused during delivery.


Upcoming Tests
A head ultrasound is tentatively scheduled for April 17 to check for brain bleeds. We are praying for no brain bleeding, but it is a very frequent issue with micro-preemies, so we are prepared if one does appear.

Thank you for all your love, support and prayers.