More fluid in the lungs

Riley had his cardiology check-up today which included a chest x-ray and an echo. Riley has been doing quite well, although he often complains of an upset stomach usually after meals (he tells us he's "not feeling well" and wants to lie down on the couch). Additionally, Riley's nighttime diuretics have been a major headache for us all, forcing us to wake him up during the night to use the potty. He's usually soaked to the bones, half-asleep and disoriented. It's been very frustrating. We were hoping for a reduction or even elimination of the evening Lasix.

We arrived for Riley's x-ray appointment at 3pm and proceeded to sit for half an hour. When Suzanne got up to ask, we were told that no x-ray was scheduled and we were waiting for our 3:30pm echo. We'd left the x-ray paperwork at home and so I had to scurry off to the cardiologist's office to get another copy.

Almost immediately we could tell from the echo that there are still pleural effusions in Riley's left chest. We then had the x-ray, but after the confusion and delay it was after 4:45pm before we made it over to the cardiologist. Dr. Tarnoff said Riley looked good and his vitals were as expected. The fluid in the right side of his lung has subsided since the last visit but the left side has increased, as we could see from the echo and x-ray. There is no indication that the fluid is resulting from protein losing enteropathy or chylothorax - usually these are accompanied by significant swelling in the entire lower body. But the increased fluid was discouraging.

As a result of the effusions, Dr. Tarnoff increased Riley's Lasix from 2mg twice a day to 2.5mg twice a day. He will see us again in 2-3 months. If the fluid has subsided at that time, it means the Lasix is working. If it is still there, he will look to schedule Riley for a heart catheterization to investigate. They would be looking for possible blockage in the lung vessels which could be corrected in the cath lab with stents. If the cath doesn't find anything, it means we would just need to continue with aggressive diuretics. We're hoping that the increased dosages do the trick and we don't need to go back to the cath lab. Additionally, he stopped the digoxin. He doesn't believe Riley needs it anymore and it could possibly be the cause of Riley's stomach discomfort.

We didn't get out of the hospital until almost 6pm, and everyone (Riley, Carter, Mom, Dad and Grandma) were exhausted and famished. Fortunately a delicious dinner awaited us all at Herbivore. Riley ate a gigantic meal and fell asleep during the drive home.

In the end we're disappointed. We'd hoped to leave with a reduction in Lasix and we ended up with an increase. Hopefully the frustration will be worthwhile and Riley's effusions finally go away before our next visit in late March or early April. We also hope that the digoxin was the cause of Riley's upset tummy.