Day Three Post-Op

Bobby had a bit of a rough night. While he's making good progress overall, he was very uncomfortable and cried out several times during the night, in spite of the morphine on demand and tylenol doses. Anesthesia has re-assessed the pain management plan, and have upped the frequency he can have the low dose morphine (from once every 8 minutes to once every 6). The doctors and nurses all assure me that he is on such a small dose, that giving him the extra morphine for now is not a big deal.

From morning rounds, the good news to report is that Bobby's 3 chest tubes will be removed today, as well as his foley catheter. As Mama A wrote in a previous entry, people who've undergone heart surgery before, report that those pesky chest tubes are, by far, the most painful part of the process. Removing the chest tubes and foley means snuggle time for Mamas V and A with their Bubsy Bear...

In other news, Bobby's chest xray looked good, so they've reduced respiratory therapy treatments from 6 times a day to 4 times a day. He will also be started on a larger volume of formula for his feeds - he'll take 70ml (roughly, 2 1/3 ounces) over an hour, then he'll have an hour break. They've also added back his Prevacid medicine to help with his GERD (acid reflux), as they continue to ramp up the feeds.