Elijah did great on the medical roller coaster at Gillette Children's Hospital in St. Paul yesterday. Little brother Will (1), big sister Lydia (6) and both parents accompanied him. He started about 9 a.m. with the standard "height and weight," which is no big deal unless you have to remove your shoes and braces and stand tall on feet you can't feel. He stands 3' 6" and weighs fifty pounds.
Next was the cystometrogram, a long test requiring the patient to lie very still while the bladder is filled to capacity (and beyond) through a catheter and then drained--all the while measuring internal pressure. This determines bladder capacity and if the patient is in danger of reflux into the ureters/kidneys. Elijah enjoyed watching Robin Hood during this test, periodically giving the nurse vital information about the characters on the screen. At age four he is still not nervous about lying half-naked on a table and carrying on a conversation with medical personnel.
Next was a renal ultrasound on a different hospital floor (bladder/kidney pictures). The technician mistook Elijah's Robin Hood hat for a Peter Pan hat. He corrected her.
Then we saw the urologist, Dr. David Vandersteen. He likes Elijah--calls him "the prophet." He also knew the difference between Peter Pan and Robin Hood. He told us what we suspected during the CMG, that Elijah's bladder capacity and pressures are back where they should be for his age! We assume this means he is responding to the intermittent catheterization program and to the oxybutinin patches he wears around the clock (Elijah's only medication). You may remember the report from the summer of 2007 that said his bladder was in bad shape.
Next was Dr. Stephen England, Elijah's orthopedic surgeon and another very kid-friendly physician. He broke away from his surgery schedule to see Elijah and save us an extra trip to St. Paul. He was also encouraged at Elijah's mobility but said he thinks Elijah should have physical therapy to maintain his progress--a point with which Elijah's state-funded HMO disagrees.
After a quick lunch and a visit to the Assistive Technology department to correct a problem with Elijah's new Green Bay Packers braces (no shortage of fun poked by all the Viking fans), we were off to the west side of the Twin Cities to see Dr. Marshall Taniguchi, a Packer fan and pediatric physiatrist (in that order). His job as a rehabilitation physician is to evaluate Elijah's condition and recommend therapy or devices that may be neccessary to keep him independent and ambulatory. He also thinks therapy is necessary and plans to write a letter to the HMO.
By then it was the height of the evening commute, so we maneuvered our way back to Wisconsin and rewarded our young soldier at home with a late McDonald's supper and a video. He slept in this morning.
We are very thankful to God for his healing power, for medical science (the result of men obeying God's command to subdue the earth) and for the easy-going demeanor of Elijah through a very long day of being poked, prodded and asked to perform. We are asking God to help us figure out how to keep Elijah dry between cathings (a procedure he will have to learn). This is a small problem next to our concerns until yesterday about protecting his kidneys from a spasmodic bladder, but we are interested in helping Elijah to achieve "social continence."
The other prayer concern is that we could find ways to keep Elijah physically active. Young people with his condition usually become overweight and lose mobility as a result.
Thanks for reading through this whole treatise. We are thankful for you.
Before the Face of God,
Steve
