As many of you know by now, mom has been admitted to Providence again. She's been here since the middle of last week. She had a terrible cold and when she went to her check-up at the Heart Institute, they were very concerned about her breathing. They thought she might have pneumonia. So she was taken to the emergency room. But they said her lungs were clear, and started using diuretics to try and release some fluid that was obviously building up and causing congestive heart failure. Labs did not seem to indicate that her heart was blocked, so they decided it was kidney related. Her lab results for kidney function have been steadily declining bit by bit. They admitted her to get the fluid down, and after three days of heavy duty diuretics, they decided on dialysis to get the job done. They put a catheter in her carotid artery and she is currently in her third round of dialysis. The first two rounds released 6 pounds of water weight. Dr. Finley, her cardiologist, says that once they get the fluid off, they can better evaluate what is causing the fluid to build up in the first place: her heart or her kidney.
If her kideny is the culprit, this may mean that the kidney that we had transplanted 8 years ago this summer is in failure, and she may be looking at regular dialysis again. This is disheartening, but we think that heart issues would be more serious and scary. Either way, mom can use your prayers and happy thoughts. She is in room 261 in the Renal Care Unit at Providence Hospital, if anyone would like to call or visit. She is getting a lot of reading and crocheting done, to be sure!
