The Testing
The testing actually went very smoothly. Those techs who work with children are just wonderful. They were patient when she was wiggly, they talked me through each procedure repeatedly and were very clear about what to expect about the results, etc... I was soo thankful Shea took the day off to come with us --we both had to hold her down during the VCUG ( dye test) and it was hard. I could not see when they stuck the catheter in her--but suddenly both Shea and i could feel her body convulse and her eyes got so big---and then she wailed! That was the hardest part!! But the tech who was also holding her down talked to her, gave her toys and they let me feed her so that calmed her down.
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| Waiting for the testing to begin |
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| Love her cute "monkey" hair! |
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| She had to be stripped down for both procedures so here we are waiting for the dye test. |
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| And this was the next morning...good as new!! ( I have a picture of Austin with his feet up on this bouncy seat too!) |
The Results
So the results were definitely NOT what I was hoping for. She was diagnosed with
Grade 3 bilateral urinary reflux. My pediatrician was recommending that antibiotics ( or a "sterilizer" as he called it..whatever, it was an antibiotic!) be started immediately. Well...i was quite taken back just by the diagnoses so I told the nurse that we would not be starting antibiotics until I got more information. So in plain English-- her diagnoses means that both of the tubes ( ureters) that lead from the kidneys down to the bladder, were backing up urine into the kidneys. ( Urine is supposed to only go down the ureters to the bladder...not back up.)
As I talked about in my previous post about her testing--her issue could be categorized as Grade 1-5. The really bad thing about grade 3? Its like no mans land. No clear answers. All my research stated that it could resolve on its own, but it would be likely to take years ( as in 3-7 years.) And then if it doesn't clear--surgery will be done. ( in the mean time antibiotics are strongly encouraged.)
So I set out on a quest to find more answers...did we need to see a specialist? And if so, who? Were there any other options besides prophylactic antibiotics? What type of damage are we looking at long term with this grade of reflux?? Could I continue to cloth diaper? What were the alternative treatments to antibiotics since that was the LAST thing I wanted to do? And finally ---who was gonna swoop in and tell me what the wisest choice would be for my little girl that would help her today and also be the best choice for her 15 years down the road!! ;)
I went some where later that day--and had a complete crying breakdown in my car. I hated that our sweet little girl was dealing with this now---and hated to know that she, like me, may be dealing with this for the rest of her life. I felt such an incredible amount of pressure to make the BEST decision. And I also felt the Lord speaking to me about trusting him with her. Ever since she was born--I have felt like I am holding so tight to her...like grasping this precious little life that has somehow redeemed so much for me. BUT since she was born--we have also been faced with challenge after challenge with her...each one making me loosen my grasp and trust the Lord to take care of her. (And me!!)
So I waited a few days and then tried to call and talk to my pediatrician. We played phone tag all day--and I dont wonder now if that was God intervening to keep me from talking to him...who can talk so fast and has an answer for everything!! Instead his nurse called and first let me know that her other test came back fine--there was no current damage to her kidneys that they could see. At this point they seemed to be growing fine. She also said " Dr Robert said he is really sorry he was not able to talk with you today and although he knows you dont want to start the antibiotic treatment, you really need to as soon as possible." UUGHH....I told her thank you very much, but that I really wanted to see a specialist....that due to MY history and her diagnoses being in such a gray treatment area, that I felt a specialist was best for us at this point. She was very sweet and said she completely agreed and understood--and gave me a name of who they referred to. (who also happened to be the name i had heard repeatedly as the best Pedi urologist in Ft Worth.)
I called the Specialist's office and was able to get in the next week....so I spent that time gathering records, notes, charts and research.
PART 2 will be the answers we were looking for.....
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