Catching Up On Bruce

OK, let's run down the current status on Bruce by issues he's dealing with:

• Responsiveness - Bruce made a turn in responsiveness a couple days ago to the point that they never did the MRI. He still spends most of the day sleeping, but now he nods in response to questions and almost always moves the body part he is asked to move. When he gets off the ventilator, they can get him off the sedation that keeps him so sleepy.
• Diarrhea - Over the weekend Bruce was hit with some serious diarrhea. They staff thought it was a condition known as CDif, so he has spent the last couple of days in isolation with everyone who goes in his room "gowned-up" from head to toe. They take three separate cultures to confirm CDif. With Bruce they took 4. All were negative. So no more isolation or gowns!!!! Yea! So why does he have diarrhea? We don't know. But it is very common in CCU. No solid foods. Lots of antibiotics. No exercise. But we are told this is not a threatening condition.
• Pneumonia - X-rays show that Bruce's lungs are improving. He still has lots of chest congestion in his lungs which is being suctioned. They can't take him of the ventilator until his pneumonia is gone, but the ventilator makes him more susceptible to pneumonia. (Ever see a dog chase its tale?) Eventually, the antibiotics will win. Pray it happens soon.
• Feeding Tube - Over the weekend, Bruce vomited for the first time and his feeding tube came out. So yesterday they installed a more long term tube straight into the stomach. All went well.
• PICC Line - Bruce's white blood cell count started to rise a bit, so they were concerned that his central line may have become infected. When they put in the feeding tube, they removed the central line and replaced it with a PICC line. (click for more info) The cultures from the central line are not back yet, but his white count has returned to normal.
• Kidneys - As long as they were in there changing stuff, they also put in a new line for his dialysis. He is getting dialysis 4 times per week. He is still not producing any urine. The kidneys are not improving yet, but we are only in week three, and it may take 8 weeks if they are going to bounce back.
• Blood Sugar - Some of you may have heard Bruce's sugar level was high. When the body is under stress, the blood sugar rises. When its under a lot of stress, the pancreas can't produce enough insulin to bring it back down. So Bruce is on an insulin drip, but this is pretty expected. We are told it is NOT a sign of a problem with the pancreas. With the insulin drip, his blood sugar level is normal.
• Bed Sores - One of the anticipated problems with Bruce given his size and his injuries, was bed sores, or more properly "pressure ulcers." (click for more info) These are caused when there is pressure of the body pressing down on one spot of the skin for a long period of time. They are dangerous if untreated. They are also extremely difficult to treat. There really is no one cure. It is a combination of multiple things. Bruce is in a special bed that rolls him from side to side to help prevent this. The nurses also do what they can to keep him changing positions, but his injuries and size make that difficult. In spite of these efforts, he now has a pressure ulcer on his right heal. They have put him in a special boot to take the pressure off that area. His bottom is also looking very raw and he will probably get some there as well. This is the new issue that requires a lot of prayer.

So life ain't easy for Bruce right now, BUT he is alive to celebrate his birthday. Not long ago, we weren't sure that would happen. Please take some time today to say "Thank You" to God for your relationship with Bruce and his continued life. Thank God for those things that are improving, and ask him to help with these new issues. God bless you all.