Update on Husband Dave

See earlier post...


   Finally -- finally -- we are seeing a ray of light. The doctors finally isolated the 'bug' that was cultured from one of Dave's blood samples -- and it turns out to be one that hangs around in hospitals (and often turns into pneumonia). How it found Dave and decided to take up residence is a mystery neither we nor the doctors can figure out at present.
   They've been pumping antibiotics into Dave intravenously ever since Monday night, and finally both the liver infection and the 'bug' are starting to back off. Today, Dave went most of the day without a fever -- the first since he got here. The 'bad' liver infection numbers have gone from around 1000 to 150, today's score. ('Normal' is less than 50.)
    Also, after reviewing the tests, one of the specialists realized that Dave's bile ducts are far smaller than they should be. (2.5 mm vs a more normal 5.5 mm) This morning (Friday), around noon they'll send a camera down his gullet and do what Dave calls a "rotor rooter" operation, checking down through, plus scraping out any gunk and gently enlarging the ducts. (They also may take a liver biopsy for further tests.) The specialist thinks this problem may have been growing quietly for years, and God willing, this procedure will take care of it permanently.
   She thinks the bile backup may have been causing the liver infection, too...Dave's got through a whole battery of tests, with little showing as a problem. Thankfully, the tests have proven that his heart is strong. (His dad died from a heart attack at age 55.) The tests are also showing no sign of tumors, cancer or gallstones -- another persistent worry.
    In the meantime, he continues to slowly improve. Today was the first he actually sat up and showed any interest in ANYTHING.
    It's been an incredibly surreal week. But we are grateful he's still here and finally starting to improve. The doctors say he can't leave ICU until the infection numbers are down, the fever stays gone, and they figure out what in the world happened. Please pray that all will go well with this procedure, and Dave can improve enough to be allowed to go home.
    Thank you so much for your prayers, visits and kind words of encouragement. We are both so grateful.