Post-Op Day 4

Baby Ross spent the night with his grandparents last night (he's been staying with Daddy). He slept for 12 hours! He misses his mommy but he is doing very well - taking all his meds, eating, playing, etc. and is continuing to grow and thrive. They are paying close attention to caring for him following all the instructions Kira left. Ross' mom is there for a couple of days to help however she can.

Kira is mostly unresponsive, her face is expressionless and she can't talk. If you ask her a question she can nod her head. She can't move her right arm and can barely move her left arm. Her family is not sure if it is because of the heavy drugs she is still on or due to the stroke. She will be having another CT today. Her mom is bringing her an MP3 player with some music to listen to and a poster board with some pictures.

Dr. Murphy (cardiologist) said this was a major stroke and that they don't know where the clot came from. Everything was done as it should have been and this horrible event was completely unexpected. He has grown very fond of Kira over the last several months and the family can tell that the doctor feels really bad about this. They want to know who to talk to when they call the hospital so he went and found out. There are multiple departments/experts involved, and they needed a central information source. The nurses' station will now be connecting Leona with the attending physician who will have more information than the head nurse.

There is now minimal drainage from the 2 tubes, so the hope is to be able to remove them soon. Kira has a feeding tube in through her nose for nutrition; has no gag reflex. Her exercise is to take deep breaths and cough. She was able to feel the nurse's touch on the fingers on her right hand. Another CT scan is set for today. This will measure any swelling in her brain and any excessive bleeding in the area where the patch was placed on her aorta.

After the drainage tubes are removed, Physical Therapy wants to get her up to stand on her right leg.

They think Kira will be moved out of ICU tomorrow. The case manager wants to speak with the family about choosing an acute facility where Kira will receive care after she is discharged from Stanford. She has lots of hard work ahead of her. They'll meet with the case manager today.

She can't communicate but seems to understand what is being said to her. They are not sure if she understands exactly what is going on with her condition, but time will tell. They have asked the nurse to make paper and pen available to her if she wants to scribble something with her left hand.

The family would love to receive cards. If you would like to send a card to Kira please mail it to:

Kira Gonzales
Tropicana Lodge
1720 West El Camino
Mountain View, CA 94041