September's Ultrasound

Today, we met with my new Doctor at West Penn for an ultrasound. Also, we saw a pediatric cardiologist to evaluate Ramsey's heart. Fortunately, the heart is in good shape so we won't need to see the cardiologist again! We didn't gather anything new from the ultrasound- our next one is October 28. At a later date, they will be able to measure the lungs to get an idea of how big they are. From what I can tell, while they will continue to monitor things via ultrasound, and hope for plenty of room for lung development, there's a lot we won't know until Ramsey is born and the surgery is complete.  The first step after delivery will be for the NICU team at West Penn to intubate him and take him directly to Children's Hospital, about 5 minutes from West Penn. At Children's he will stay in the NICU until they determine he is ready for surgery. I wish we didn't have to transport him at all, since this is a critical move. We need to schedule a meeting with the surgeons at Children's since we have many questions for them.

Following is a review from our last appointment on August 24, it gives a good explanation of the location of Ramsey's organs and I think it's safe to say that the same condition currently exists. "The baby's stomach was seen to be at the same level as the heart and is present within the left chest area. There may be some amount of small bowel in the chest as well. The heart is shifted to the right, however, pulmonary (lung) tissue is seen behind the baby's heart and there also appears to be some in the posterior left chest." Although the description sounds bad, the doctor said it is easy to put the stomach and bowels back where they belong. The hard part is whether or not the lungs can function.

Thanks to all for their continued support and prayers. It means the world to us, but it means even more to the life of little Ramsey.