Gideon's Cardio Checkup



Yesterday I spent the afternoon at Primary Children's Hospital to get Gideon's heart checked. To make a 2 and a half hour visit short, this is what our doctor found. Gideon's valve is getting worse. He started with mild regurgitation. That means when the blood is pumped from one chamber to the other some of the blood leaks back down and doesn't get circulated into the lungs and body. Gideon now has mild to moderate regurgitation. The doctor wants to watch it still but we have a complication that we don't know if it is caused by the valve or what it might be.  Gideon has lost weight in the last 6 weeks. This could be because he's not getting enough calories or because of the heart.

Children with heart issues can tend to have small appetites. We really don't know what is causing his lack of eating but I have noticed he doesn't eat much and what he does eat isn't the best for him. I have an appointment with the pediatrician on Tuesday to address the weight gain. If Gideon doesn't put on weight in the next 8 weeks he will go on a medicine for his valve. We also had a high blood pressure that the nurse blamed on his crying. I don't buy that. He was not as upset as he has been in the past when they tested his blood pressure. I've never seen his blood pressure close to being that high.  For those that might wonder, it was at 130/113. I'm going to talk to the pediatrician about taking it again on Tuesday. The doctor said this is still the same thing  we have been living since we got him, day to day. I guess when he said that I realized I had tried to go on with life and not be concerned about Gideon's heart. Maybe that won't ever be my reality. Maybe we will always see the doctor every 6-8 weeks or more. I sure hope not. Neither Gideon or I like to spend our afternoon at the doctor's office. The more we are at the doctor means his heart is getting worse.




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