The latest

The follow up ultrasound was performed on Thursday, but it was later in the afternoon, so results were not available until Friday. Friday morning, I received a call on my cell phone from Dylan's doctor. The latest ultrasound did not show any further swelling of the ventricles, nor did it indicate any need for surgery.

But...

There's always a "but", it seems. This time, the but was that she also reviewed the original MRI with a neurologist and "there is some cause for additional concern" that she wanted to speak with Barbara and I in person about. After a few hours of distress, worry and fear of the coming conference, we finally sat down with his doctor, LPN and a social worker.

Here is the gist of our discussion in a nutshell... Dylan does indeed have enlarged ventricles, but it appears to not be caused by a clot or by a drainage issue. Instead, the white brain matter around the ventricles appears to not be as large as expected. Also, it is not as mature as is expected. These are conditions known as leukomalacia and delayed myelination.

This means that Dylan will possibly experience developmental delays of either or both a motor control nature or cognitive nature. There is no way to predict the nature or extent of the delays, or even if they will definately occur. Another MRI was ordered to get more detailed imagery of the affected areas, ostensibly to better ascertain the extent of the condition.

Although this means that there may be some unexpected challlenges down the road for us, it's not a worst case scenraio, by any means. If Dylan needs some extra time to develop or to learn certain things, he'll be given all the time he needs. If he needs physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy or other help, he'll be sure to get it. If he needs more attention than the typical baby, we've got all the attention and love in the world to give him.

I'll have more later as I digest the information, research the conditions and talk with his doctor some more about it.