Emergency

Mike had to be taken to the hospital Friday night in an ambulance. He was going into Autonomic Dysreflexia. This happens to Quads if there is something wrong with their bodies that they cannot feel, and the brain tries to react but goes haywire and blood pressure is lost and the heart races out of control. He went into shock in the emergency room and had to be rushed into another section where they cut off all his clothes and admistered oxygen and whatever else was necessary and bring him back, but the Dr told Kim and I that it was still a very "touch and go", or "Dicey" situaltion. It ended up that the cause was his bladder was filled with 3 times the amount it should hold, and it was all blood. He was bleeding internally but no one knew why or from where. He was rushed into emergency surgery and it was discovered that when his nurse changed his superpubic catheter earlier Friday, she inserted it too far. It whet though his bladder and up into his urethra near the prostate, and she inflated it there, which tore all of the tissues in that erea, causing this life threatening situation. The surgeon told Mike's mom Jean, Kim and myself that he would be fine once healed and was very lucky considering everyting he faced that evening.

Mike came home yesterday and is recovering. He is pretty sore and isn't happy with the second catheter he has in until tomorrow. He is getting better slowly, but has been through a lot.

I know people around here think Shady Grove Adventist Hospital is a lousey hospital, me being one of them, but everybody involved in Mike's care Friday in the emergency room and operation room did their job perfectly, which saved Mike's life that night. The care he got in his room was excellent too. We are all grateful to them.

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