See below for a few updates- some improvements, some decisions.
LABS- Since last night, JoAnne's white blood cell count (immune system marker) has risen to .4! That's a bit higher than before, but still needs to gain at least a few full points to get into the safe zone. Little by little. Same for her hematocrit (red blood cells), which have risen a bit, but need to get higher...
MEDS- They have taken her off the blood pressure medication, which means her heart is doing better on it's own! This will also allow them to put the feeding tube in to allow her to metabolize her own food (rather than intravenously). They have done this already, but it may take a few more days before they remove her from IV food- her colostomy requires a bit of adjustment digestion-wise, but they hope to move her to stomach feeding soon.
R LEG- Now to the tough stuff. There was quite a bit of muscle and tissue lost, her sciatic nerve is no longer alive, and the resulting bone loss caused by the bacteria has rendered her R leg completely useless. It is relatively certain that in the next few days the surgeon will decide that an amputation is needed for Joanne's right leg. He explained that keeping her leg could possibly complicate her recovery, too, as we must prevent the spread of bacteria to her pelvic bone (this could be extremely dangerous if it were to happen), and this will also allow them to use tissue from the healthy front of her R leg to reconstruct her R buttock rather than tissue from her back (much less painful for her and more practical). They expect this may happen within the next week or two, and we will of course keep you posted on this.
ROUTINE- As we mentioned yesterday, she'll be having a cleaning procedure every other day to double check for bacteria, clean her exposed wounds, etc. We'll let you know if anything changes overnight, but if everything is stable, we'll let you know how it all went after the procedure. Update times could vary, as procedure scheduling can get pushed later, at times.
LOVE- Kelty and Justin's celebration last night was amazing! There was so much to laugh about, cry about, and celebrate, and it felt SO good to have such incredible family and friends so close. Aunt JoAnne would have loved to be there, and we felt her there with us, and told her all about it when Kelty and I visited a few minutes ago. We asked her chipper Irish nurse, Yvonne, if we could bring music for JoAnne to listen to. She said yes! We're thinking Joni Mitchell, Bonnie Raitt and Ramblin' Jack Elliot. Any other favorites you think she'd like?
Much love to you all, and thank you for continuing to send your thoughts and prayers our way... means so much.
LOVE!
Hannah, Price, Jani & Kelty
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