Repeat

At around 4:00, Ayden's oxygen was increased from .1 to .5, so they began the oxygen wean yet again. He is currently on .15, so it didn't take long for him to recover. They tried another IV diuretic today; while it may have made him pee more, it didn't seem to help him get off the oxygen.

Ayden's chest x-ray was the same, and Ayden continues to clinically be a rock star. One wouldn't even know that anything was going on internally without the pulse-ox and chest x-rays. Dr. Doyle admitted today in rounds that he too felt "frustrated" by Ayden's current situation.

They did do a chest ultrasound, and Ayden has fluid in his lungs (we knew that); he also has a pocket of fluid outside of his right lung, which may or may not be inhibiting his ability to breathe. Dr. Doyle is speaking with the cardiac surgery team in the morning. If they determine the pocket of fluid is part of the problem, they will be faced with the best way to get rid of the fluid: chest tube or needle. If they believe that the fluid can be removed with a one time event, they will use a needle to draw out the fluid. If they believe that Ayden may continue to develop fluid around his lungs, they will put in a chest tube. Both solutions require a few hours in the PCCU under minor sedation (no ventillator!), and then he can return to his 6C room...

... or maybe Dr. Doyle's conversation won't even be necessary. Maybe God will grant us a miracle in the morning, and his chest x-ray will show clear lungs!

P.S. Ayden didn't seem to miss Methadone today. Tomorrow's response will give us a better indication of how he is handling the wean.