Baby Eagan - NICU Day 8 - Kangaroo Care

I held my baby today!! I had to wait eight very long days, but I held my baby! It took a nurse and a respiratory tech to move him onto my chest, under my shirt so my body heat would keep him warm. He has so many tubes and cords connected to him that watching them move him really made me nervous. Once he was on my chest, he snuggled up tight against me and fell fast asleep. His vitals stayed perfect while I held him for an amazing two and a half hours. I would have stayed with him longer, but I had an appointment across the hospital to remove the many staples from the c-section and my PICC line. I am thrilled to be PICC line free for the first time in over three months.

This is mommy heaven!

Sleeping peacefully on Mommy's chest.

The tubes and cords weighed more than Eags.

Here is a run-down of his current status:

Weight
1 lb 14 oz - Eagan is UP 3 ounces from yesterday!

Length
12.5" - We aren't measuring his length yet, so this is birth length.

Breathing
Eagan is on an oscillator and doing well. He is still breathing room air (21% oxygen).

His most recent blood gas test was good in all areas!

Vitals
Eagan's bradycardias are being caused by mucous plugs in his breathing tube. His doctor wants to try CPAP as soon as possible. If that does not go well, we will have to explore other options.

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. Since the umbilical line has been in for a week, his doctor would like to remove it soon to avoid infection.

Eagan also has a PICC line in his right arm.

Another IV was placed today for transfusions.

Medications
Eagan has an extremely high white blood count. The doctors cannot find the source of infection. We are putting him on erythromycin until we can determine exactly what is causing this.

Eags is getting Diflucan because he now has a yeast infection in his throat, most likely from the intubation tube.

His thyroid blood test came back low. He is now on Sythroid for low thyroid.

Caffeine has been added to his medications. Caffeine has multiple benefits for Eagan such as reducing his risk for cerebral palsy. The main purpose of the caffeine is to help Eagan to remember to breathe, preventing spells of apnea. He gets caffeine once a day.

He will be getting a glycerin suppository every 12 hours depending on how often he is having bowel movements. It seems odd to be so excited about dirty diapers, but he is peeing and pooping great which means his body is functioning well!

Nutrition
I am pumping breastmilk for Eagan. His feedings are still at 1cc of breastmilk every 6 hours. At 10 days old, his feeds will increase to every 3 hours.

Eagan is still getting vitamins through his umbilical catheter and lipids (a healthy fat).

Transfusions
Another transfusion was done today due to his very low iron levels.

April 15 - Eagan got his first blood transfusion tonight. This will be the first of many transfusions Eagan will need. His hematocrit (the amount of red blood cells in the blood) has been low, which is just one of the many reasons he needs a transfusion. His blood is also drawn for tests quite often. Even a tiny amount of blood is a lot of blood coming from such a tiny baby. The transfusion will also help Eagan maintain proper oxygenation.

Jaundice
Eagan was not under the bili lights today. His jaundice levels have gone back down.

Upcoming Tests
Next week, the head ultrasound will be repeated.

Thank you for all your love, support and prayers.