Level II Ultrasound

Chuck and I drove over to Destin today to see a neo-natal specialist and to have a Level II ultrasound done. At our last regular appointment we were to told that the baby had dilated kidneys and to "be safe" we were encouraged to see a specialist.

Here is the lowdown - as there is good and bad news...

Let's start with the good news first. It is less complicated. First of all, down syndrome and any other chromosome abnormalities have been essentially ruled out. Big sigh of relief. Next, all of his organs - with the exception of his kidneys - look great. Everything looks normal - including all the fluid levels, which indicates that his kidneys are functioning. And we got two great profile pictures of him.

Now, the bad news. There is something definitely wrong with at least one of his kidneys. While the right one looks close to regular size - the left one does not. His left kidney is certainly holding onto more (A LOT MORE) fluid than the right one. The specialist seems to think that the tube that leads from his (left) kidney to his bladder is very narrow which is preventing the fluid from draining properly, even though it is still draining some. (That is the short version.) However, he did emphasis that the size of the kidneys change quickly and if we were to take another picture tomorrow of the kidneys they could be a different size than they were today. (Which could be good or bad.)

So what now???

First of all, there isn't much we can do at this point, but wait it out. We will continue to see the neo-natal specialist every month until he is born. Close attention being paid to fluid levels as if those get low, there is a chance that they will take him early. Let's hope this isn't the case.

Treatment?

There are four treatment options:

1) The problem could correct itself. However, with the amount of fluid in there today, the doctor didn't seem to think this option is very likely.

2) Baby Boy could have to have a procedure on ONE of his kidneys shortly after he is born.

3) Baby Boy could have to have a procedure on BOTH of his kidneys shortly after he is born.

4) WORST case scenario - and this is a very long shot based on what we saw today - he could have to a kidney transplant. However, the doctor was quick to reassure us that this was the worst case scenario and that he did not think it would get to this.

In reality, the specialist is fairly certain that the baby will have to have an operation to correct this within a few weeks of birth. They wait a few weeks with the idea that sometimes the problem can fix itself once the baby is not being exposed to all the hormones.

So that being said - this was not the news I was hoping for today. I am trying to be positive however. The problem is fixable, and it is not life threatening. And chances are once it is corrected he will never have anymore problems with this. But I can't help feel upset about this. I think every mom wants their babies to be born perfect with no complications and this just isn't the case for us. I have been teary a lot today but feel I am doing better now.

At this point, I am trying to just process all the information the doctor gave us. All this information I am giving to you is just the basic stuff. He threw a lot of stuff at us today, and I will be honest, had Chuck not been there, I am not sure I would have gotten most of the information the doctor was sharing. I was pretty foggy and trying to not loose it on the table. Chuck was awesome at asking all the right questions for us both and keeping his head in the room while I was off in the clouds. He is good at that in times of "trail" - keeping his head in the game.

In other news, today is our little princesses third birthday. I hate that most of our day was spent away from her, but she had a little party last night. I had also intended to blog about her birthday and her "party" tonight, but based on the news of today, I feel like I have no energy to face it tonight. So instead, since she has fallen asleep all ready, I am going to eat my PF Changs, take a shower, call my momma, and hit the hay myself.

Please keep our little man in your thoughts and prayers! We appreciate them all! His next normal appointment is Thursday and the next neo-natal appoinment is June 29th - this time in Panama City.