Jacob's Hospital Stay

Whew, these last few days have been ROUGH! I'll warn you now...this will be a LONG post, but so much has been going on, and I know there are some of you that will want the details, so here goes...

Most of you know from reading along here on my blog that Jacob has had some illnesses here lately. The week prior to spring break, he had to go to his pediatrician for antibiotics for a sore throat and fever. (Tested negative for strep, so it was diagnosed as drainage irritation.) Then the week after spring break, (last Friday to be exact) he had to return to the doctor for another sore throat and fever. She said his throat was very red, and since he had the fever as well, she went ahead and tested him for strep even though we both felt it would come back negative like the previous one, and it did. Again, she said she really thought his throat was very raw from sinus drainage and he started another antibiotic. Fast forward to this Wednesday...I am working my very first full day of the school year as a sub at Kyrock, (and I had already deemed it my last before the day ever started!) I run into Jacob's class going to lunch on my class' way back from lunch. His teacher catches me to the side and said that he had been crying all morning wanting me. I am very baffled because he had told me just that morning that he had waited all school year for me to work at his school so I could go in with him. Since my lunch break coincided with his, I thought I would have lunch with him and cheer him up. When I caught a look at him in the lunch room, I knew something was amiss. He was too pale and had a bad look on his face even though no one was paying any attention to him. When I went to him, I thought he was going to start crying, and it was all he could do to keep from it the entire time we were in lunch. He told me that his belly was hurting and of course I asked if he needed to use the bathroom or if it felt like he was going to vomit, and he said no to each. I ate my lunch and he laid his head on the table without taking a bite, and I noticed he had chill bumps all over his arms. He didn't really feel feverish to me at this point though. I walked with him back up the hall and as we got to the library hallway he had that look like he was going to vomit. I rushed him to the trash with his hand over his mouth and he did try to vomit, but it was more like he just spit up nothing. (Cause there was nothing in there I guess.) Well, he had the most awful color I had ever seen by this time. A few adults were in the hall way and they all agreed he looked BAD! Now I don't know what to do. I am obligated to work, but now my son is sick and I know he is miserable! The teacher I was working for was so gracious and told me I had to be mom first and that I should do what I felt like I needed to do. I went to check on Jacob and he was sitting at his desk with his jacket and hood on, with is head on his desk, shivering all over. By the time we got to the front door his teeth were chattering. I got him in the car and he slept the whole way home. I got him in and took his temp and it was 102.5. He drifted back off to sleep and I waited until the pediatrician's office came back in from lunch. What had me concerned was his recent illness and the fact that he was on an antibiotic and still running a fever. He was still saying that he did not need to use the bathroom or vomit. When I explained the situation to the ped's office, they wanted me to bring him right in. When I got him up, he winced and grabbed his lower right side of his belly. He slept the whole way to the office and we were seen quite swiftly. Dr. Stewart said it could be a stomach bug, but due to the higher fever and the location he said hurt in his tummy, coupled with frequency of illnesses, led her to send him for blood work and x-rays and then referred him to a general surgeon to get his take of the situation. By the time we see Dr. Daniel, the labs have come back and he said his white blood count was elevated and Jacob said that some of the prodding hurt his tummy. While waiting for the doctor, Jacob had some rounds of diarrhea and I reported this to the Dr. He said that he could have a really bad stomach bug or it could be his appendix. He wanted to put him in the hospital to get an ultrasound done and so he could watch him overnight and see if the white count came down in the morning. Since the doctor's office was connected to the Medical Center's outpatient, we didn't have a very long walk. We were registered rather quickly and before long, were in our room. Love his heart, they started an IV and he was SO brave for the first stick that I was quite surprised. Wouldn't you know, the vein blew and they had to re-stick him. He took it much harder the second time around. They came soon after and took him to ultrasound and he did well with that. Back in the room, he watched tv and was not allowed to eat or drink anything in case it was his appendix and he should have to have surgery, but he never even asked for anything. Dr. Daniel came in after 10:00 and said that the ultrasound was inconclusive for appendicitis, meaning that even though nothing showed up, appendicitis still couldn't be ruled out. He said if the white count went down in the morning, we could pretty much pin it on a virus. If it went up or stayed the same after a night of fluids and antibiotics, then we might consider taking the appendix. We were up several times through the night having to use the bathroom, sooo....

The next morning they came and drew blood and then brought him some juice and jello. He loved it. A little later, they came in and said he couldn't have anything else because he was going to have a CT scan. His white numbers had went up remarkably since the afternoon before. (up from 11-19.7) That was NOT what the doctor wanted to happen, so he was back on track to trying to rule out appendicitis. He had the CT scan, or cat test as he called it, and not twenty minutes later, the fellow came up and said because of Jacob being so skinny there was no fat there to provide a contrast to be able to see the appendix. He was to drink a cup full of contrast and then have another scan. WELL, that didn't go as planned. Let's just say, a few teeny sips and Jacob being made mad at a student nurse later, he was wheeled down to x-ray anyway. That test again came back inconclusive. Dr. Daniel came in that afternoon and you could tell he was at sort of an impasse as to what to do. The white count being up so high was of utmost concern. He said even though ultrasounds and scans come back inconclusive, you still can't rule out the appendix. He was leaning more toward a bad GI bug, because Jacob was not exhibiting the tenderness and pain that most with appendicitis have, but he wanted to be sure. I asked and he said generally a stomach virus didn't make the white count go up that high, but with the dehydration and fever, it was possible. He also said the thing about appendicitis was that it often followed on the trail of another illness and with having been to the doctor the Friday before, it would have been about the right time for the appendix to act up. We agreed it would be best to check the white count the next morning, and he said if it went down any, then he would send us home. You'll have to ask Jacob about his "crazy" nurse and her white count dance! He really thought she was crazy and said that it must have been her first day on the job!! =) He was able to sleep all night and didn't have to use the bathroom any. (Now, I must insert here that Jason and I were sleeping in high-back-padded chairs. Not recliners or bed-chairs! We usually slept with our feet on the end of the bed. After sleeping a couple of hours or so in the bed with Jacob, I got back in my chair and was kind of tilted to the side. I woke up and couldn't feel my whole right side. I thought I had had a stroke!! Then I realized my arm and leg had went to sleep...man did that hurt when the feeling came back!) BTW~Jacob looked and felt much better today and he had no fever, but there was still diarrhea. They put him on a BRAT diet - (name fits at times!) bananas, rice, applesauce, toast, crackers, popsicles. For dinner he ate applesauce, toast, some banana, and most surprisingly-beef broth (and loved it!)

Friday morning ~ They came in and took blood to get Jacob off to a lovely start. He ate another good BRAT breakfast, with chicken broth this time, and it then became a waiting game. Around lunch or so, the nurse said that she had spoken with Dr. Daniel about the CBC results and his white count was down considerably. We found out later it had came back down to 9 which is within normal limits. The thing was, Jacob was still having frequent diarrhea. Dr. Daniel wanted to have his pediatrician to do a consult regarding that part. The nurse came in later and said that Dr. Stewart wanted to do a sample to check for rota-virus. Now the boy had been going all morning, and now that he needed to go, the ole bowels got a little gun-shy! We finally got the sample and it turned back into a waiting game. Dr. Stewart called me that evening and then came on over to see us. She was surprised we were still there! It was pretty much concluded that he had some type of a stomach/gastro-intestinal bug. She checked Jacob out and looked over his charts. She talked to us about helping to control the diarrhea and all that good stuff, and I asked about the frequency of his illnesses. She thinks it is very possible that he just happened to catch the bugs in close intervals. She said we would watch him and if he were to keep getting sick, we would look into checking his immune system and so forth. She said they had seen a LOT of sickness here lately. Jacob's temp had ran around 99.5 all day and Dr. Stewart said he would probably have a little fever as long as the diarrhea continued. As far as she was concerned, Jacob could go home, but Dr. Daniel would have to discharge him because he admitted him. The nurse on duty was supposed to call Dr. Daniel, but due to a shift change, it didn't happen. When the new nurse was making rounds, she said she would finish rounds and call him. We finally got to leave the hospital around 9:15 or so. Jacob fell asleep on the way, and we stopped at Mamaw Shela's to pick up Matthew. He was so excited to see his momma and daddy!!! AND we were so excited to see him. I hadn't seen him since early Wednesday morning when I dropped him off at my mom's.

I am so thankful that Jacob didn't require surgery and I'm hoping that he will be able to stay well after this round! I was most concerned with something underlying being to blame for his "catching" so much, but I feel better about that now. Dr. Stewart said the important thing was that he bounced back in between episodes of illness. I'll just continue to watch him. A big thank you to everyone who said a prayer on our behalf, who called to check on us, or sent gifts. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to my parents and mother-in-law for taking such good care of Matthew for me!!!!!!! I seriously hope this post is readable! I wrote part of it last night and started to go to sleep while typing!! I finished it this morning, and I don't have the energy to re-read it now to make sure it makes sense! =)

PS ~ Jacob is up this morning. He is feeling well, but has already made a couple of trips to the potty. He does not have any fever though. We're gonna raise the windows, I'm gonna let him play, I'll run after Matthew, and I want to clean house!!!