A Quick Update from Kansas City

We wanted to share a quick update from Kansas City.

Short Version

Today our daughter Elizabeth had open-heart surgery to repair a fairly serious defect (see previous posts if you want to know more about her condition). After a nearly eight-hour surgery we are happy to share that initial reports are very positive. While there were some small, but scary moments, she seems to have come through in very good shape. We will be in the Cardiac ICU here at Children's Mercy for several days, and then on a step-down unit for an additional 5-10 days before we can come home. Thank you for your prayers and support!

Longer Version

We arrived at Children's Mercy this morning at 7:00 am (and it is 7pm as I'm typing today sitting in her ICU room). After a parade of medical staff, her procedure began at about 8:30, continuing until about 4:30 pm. During the procedure they patched several holes and reconstructed two valves. This was an involved procedure with complex anesthesia and lots of monitoring, but she did well.

During scans after the initial repair was done the team discovered that one of the patches was leaking. This meant they had to put her back on the bypass machine so they could go in and fix the leak. Thankfully, this was successful and the surgeon reports that her reconstructed valves are functioning as well as any reconstructed valve can function. While there is a chance she will need additional surgery in the future (as one of the valves has a very minor leak), she should be good for many years.

There was also a moment near the end of the procedure that she needed an external pacemaker to keep her heart beating in proper rhythm. While this was scary (as one of the risks of the surgery is the potential for the kid to need a pacemaker for life), thankfully it was just for a few minutes. Her heart is now working on its own and doing well.

The next few days will be a lot of waiting and working to get her off of the many supportive machines and medicines, with extra monitoring of her lung function (as this is an area of concern). Everyone so far post-surgery has been very positive and encouraging about her prognosis, so we feel good -- although quite exhausted.

Thanks again for your prayers and support of our family - it makes this hard time a little more bearable.