Shunt Happens

Today is the big day, Leah will have surgery this evening to put in a shunt.  This is the surgery that we have dreaded since finding out about her spina bifida 5 months ago.  I think we were both hoping for a miracle, that we'd be in the 5-10% of people with SB who don't need one.  On Monday she had another head ultrasound that showed increased fluid in her ventricles.  The doctor also measured her head and the size had increased more than normal.  Surgery is tonight at 5pm. 

There is a tiny little straw that goes into the ventricles and a valve attached to it that will drain the excess fluid down a tube.  The tube is run behind her ear and down the back of her neck and into her abdomen where the fluid will be absorbed by her body.  She will have a small c-shaped incision in her head to insert the shunt and a small incision in her abdomen to pull the tubing through, but otherwise there is no visible sign of a shunt once those are healed.  We will be able to feel a small bump in her head where the shunt is and also the tubing down her neck while she's still small.  The tubing is long enough for her to grow into adulthood without needing it replaced, as long as it continues to work.  The likelihood of a shunt malfunction in a young child is very high, so we'll be educated in what to look for.

As much as we've dreaded this, we're also a bit relieved.  We knew that she'd need one and it was just a matter of when.  It's been great having her home for the last 2 weeks and feeling like we're a normal family.  We've also worried when she's been overly fussy that she's uncomfortable, and also worried each week at her doctor appointments that we'd get the news.  Now we can deal with it, have her surgery, and move on.  We've also tried to keep her away from a lot of people, since we knew we'd be back in the hospital, so now we can feel more comfortable having her out and friends come over to visit.

Please keep Leah in your prayers tonight and for her recovery.  We hope to be home in a couple days.  Children's Hospital blocks me from posting new blogs, so I'll have to post an update when we get home.