Dear All,
Malachi is due for a Post-fontan Heart Cath, and has been scheduled for Friday, February 17th at 8:00 am. We have been expecting this next part of Malachi's journey since his surgery last August 19, 2010. They will be looking at his Pulmonary artery to see if it has gotten bigger since the surgery. His oxygen saturations are not the range they would like them in, so they want to get a good idea why. A Heart Cath is the best way to do this. If at any point up to the Cath Malachi develops a cold, they will have to reschedule. It is important for him to have healthy lungs to adjust to the new changes.
There could be two reasons for the lower oxygen sats: His pulmonary artery is still too small and blood isn't fully getting to his lungs. (This would be fixed by placing a stent in the artery.) The other reason could be that the "hole" (fenestration) the surgeon left (as a back up while his body adjusted to the changes) needs closed up.
The plan for the Cath is to close up the fenestration, and possibly put in a stent to open up his pulmonary artery. The prayer is that closing the fenestration would be all that is needed. We expect the procedure to be a quick in and out, but do know that every aspect still needs covered in prayer. We do anticipate an overnight stay for observation as his body will need to adjust to the new change with (hopefully) higher sats.
We ask prayer for:
*No colds!!!
*Clarity, focus, and direction for all staff who attend Malachi in the Cath Lab. (Most of them are Christians, so that is ALWAYS AWESOME!)
*Clean and sterile instruments, and for them to all work flawlessly.
*That Malachi's Pulmonary Artery has grown and closing up the fenestration will "solve" the low-sats problem.
*No unexpected surprises. (This seems to happen a lot with Malachi.)
*A quick and speedy recovery for Malachi.
Thanks again for praying for our little man. We have been amazed at all the outpouring and love for him and us over these past four years. Our prayer is that this will be the last thing he will need, and just "maintenance" in the future.
Thanks and love to you all,
Philip, April, and Malachi
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Phil. 4:6
