Catching you up to date

Welcome to the first entry in Dylan's Den. My wife Barbara and I are happy you have taken the time to visit, and we look forward to keeping you informed about the trials and tribulations involved with our little miracle, Dylan.


For those who don't know, Barbara and I had been trying to have a child for 11 years, all with no success. We had all but given up when Barbara took a "just in case" pregnancy test before going on a vacation that might have involved some drinking, only to find that it was positive! A few more home tests and a blood test all confirmed it, and we were officially pregnant.


Most of the pregnancy was rather uneventful. Barbara had her bouts of morning-sickness and the typical discomforts of pregnancy, but nothing serious. Until she was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, that is. That threw us for a loop, as suddenly there was a need for a controlled diet and 4x daily checks of her blood sugar.


Barbara was a trooper though, and took right to the new regimen. She maintained her blood sugar within acceptable levels quite well, through a specific meal plan and through excercise on a treadmill. She was determined to do whatever it took to keep her baby healthy.
That was going well until May 10. That was the day that her water broke, at 28 weeks gestation. We rushed to the hospital in a near-panic. After about 4 hours of tests and checks, they confirmed it- she had ruptured prematurely.


The exact name for the situation is Preterm Premature Rupture of the Membrane, or pPROM. It is typically followed by labor and a premature birth. Usual treatment involves administering steroid injections to encourage faster development of the fetus' lungs and, if the mother is in labor, using drugs to stop it. Luckily, Barbara showed no signs of being in labor. They gave the steroid injections as a precautionary measure, in case she did go into labor in the near future. The lungs were a big concern with a gestational age less than 32 weeks.


Without any signs of labor, the plan was to keep Barbara on bedrest and in the hospital until Dylan reached 32 weeks of gestation. At that point, they planned to collect amniotic fluid to use in a test that would determine the maturity of his lungs. If they were mature enough, they would induce labor and deliver the baby at 32 weeks. If not, they would do so at 34 weeks. With a ruptured amniotic sack, there is a great risk of infection to both the mother and the baby, and the 34 week point has been determined to be the break-even point. It's a balancing act between the risk of infection and the desire for the fetus to have unhindered development in the womb. Barbara was not looking forward to a possible 6 week stay in the hospital, but she was wiling to tough it out, whatever it took.


All of these plans were laid to waste when on May 20, Barbara began to feel some cramps. Unsure if they were contractions or not, she mentioned them to her nurse. The nurse said they sounded like contractions, but not to worry until there were more than 6 in one hour. They continued at a pace of about 4 or 5 per hour until midday Wednesday. At that point, they were stronger and more frequent. After one particularly strong contraction, Barbara found herself to be bleeding. Two nurses quickly grabbed her up and took her to Triage where she was put on monitors for a few hours. It was determined that she was in labor, and that the baby would be coming soon, but they couldn't say how soon.


Wednesday night came and went. The contractions were coming fast and furious but thanks to an epidural, the initial pain of the frst several hours of contractions was a thing of the past. Thursday night, around 11:30pm Doctor Jackson came in, surveyed the situation and said, "We have to go, NOW".


Barbara was suddenly being pushed out of the room in her bed and I was suddenly being dressed in a hat and gown. The next thing I know, we're in an operating room and Barbara is being yelled at to push. 30 minutes later, I'm looking at my son, watching him swing his arms, kick his legs and listening to him cough and begin to whine. Then, he was grabbed up by the pediatrics group and rushed off to be assessed.


Dylan Robert joined us when he was at 30 weeks gestational age on May 23, 2008. He was 3 lbs, 3oz and 16 1/2" long. He has a full head of blonde hair.


For a 30-weeker, he is doing very well. At first, he was on CPAP to ensure his lungs were able to stay inflated, but that was removed before the end of his first day. He is now breathing fine on his own, without any additional oxygen and his oxygen saturation levels are always at or near 100%.


His blood sugar levels were a bit low initialy, but have risen to normal levels and are no longer a concern.


Over the first two days, he lost 2 ounces, but has since gained them back. He is currently still on IV fluids for the bulk of his nutrition, but is getting 9cc of his mother's milk in a feeding tube every 3 hours.


He did have a brush with jaundice during days 2 and 3, but after spending some time under a special phototherapy light, is beyond that as well. The nurse did say that it is a pretty common thing, and that it is very likely it will come back one more time before he beats it entirely.


Overall, given how difficult he was to conceive and how early he decided to come to us, things are going very well for little Dylan.