Drainage tube going back in

We were skeptical when the pigtail drainage tube was pulled last night prematurely. Basically slowed drainage led to an x-ray, which showed that the tube had slipped (see previous post). This morning another x-ray and an echo showed that there was a large pocket of fluid under his right lung. (The pigtail was originally inserted to drain fluid under his left lung.) This could explain why there would be little to no drainage until he was moving or sitting in a new position.

Anyway, it was great to be able to move him around without the VCR-sized box of fluid while it lasted. We even got him into a chair coloring and playing with cars this morning--has hasn't been up to playing much at all. And he was so exhausted from sitting up in his chair that he fell asleep during this morning's echo and is still sleeping more than two hours later. He isn't allowed to have any food or drink for six hours before sedation, so they will start the procedure after shift-change tonight--around 8 pm. They need to wait because I was painstakingly getting him to eat bites of banana and applesauce for more than an hour before the echo. Ack. This pocket of fluid (estimated to be 150 milliliters or more) could explain why his oxygen saturation has been dipping into the high 70s and low 80s at times, when it had been steady in the low- to mid-90s. It's basically squishing his lung, not allowing it to fully expand.

So it seems that we'll be here for at least another week. Once the tube is back in place, they will leave it there for several days even if it tapers off. They want to be really sure that it's done draining before they pull it. Then they will likely wait another day or two once the drain is out to make sure that no additional fluid has built up.