Sprout's Sickness Pt 2

Steve and I left the house with Sprout around 5 in the evening.  We stopped for dinner along the way and got to the hospital just before 7. We went to the ER as directed by our doctor and waited to be registered.  Since our doctor had called ahead, they had her paperwork all ready to go; but that was about all the help calling ahead was.  We still had to wait in the waiting room until our number was called to be seen.  We waited for about 15 min to be called back for her to be assessed.  They took her weight and temp (101.8) and listened to our story of why we were there.  They made some notes in the computer and sent us back out to wait again.

We ended up waiting another 1.5 hours before we were called back to an actual exam room around 10pm.  Luckily I had just finished feeding Sprout when we got called back, because they didn't want her to eat for the next 4 hours.  Once we got into the exam room (just a small room with 1 chair and a gurney), they got to work ordering tests and listening to our story again (we literally told the story 5 times to different people).  They took another urine sample, x-rays, blood work, and added an ultrasound to their list.

(Per a nurse's suggestion, we put a blanket over Sprout's seat in the waiting room to keep her air "clean".  We originally had a nice spot in the corner away from any sick people.  But then we got called to have some preliminary stuff done and when we returned our spot was gone.  We ended up in an area with a ton of sick people.  It's amazing Steve and I didn't end up with anything when we got home.)

(Finally in an exam room awaiting tests.  She was most comfortable laying on her own.  She would cry when she was touched, even when I would hold her - especially while eating.)

At 12:30, we had just finished up the tests and were waiting on an IV to be inserted.  We were treated with turkey sandwiches while we waited.  Once the IV was in, some antibiotics were started and we waited for a room to open up and us to be admitted.  We were transferred to the infectious disease ward at 2:30.  I rode in a wheel chair and held Sprout during the transfer (such weird hospital rules!).

(It was just turkey and bread, haha. We were given packets of mustard and mayo, but really it didn't help.)

I hadn't been allowed to feed Sprout since we had gotten in the exam room at 10.  She was being a trooper, but I was ready to feed her and get to bed.  We were rapidly approaching the 24 hour mark of being awake and our tempers were short.  I had a little meltdown about feeding Sprout and sent Steve to the car to get our belongings.  The resident on call came in while he was gone and gave us the run down on what was next.  He told me to go ahead and feed Sprout and then him and his team would be back in for a spinal tap.  That was the hardest test we had to watch.  They couldn't do a local anesthetic because she was too small and her skin too thin.  They worked as quick as possible and we were all able to go to sleep by 4am - Sprout in her little crib, Steve on a pull out chair, and me in a recliner.

(Sprout's room in Infectious Disease -5B- Ward.  She chilled out in that little crib, Steve in the chair in that nook, and me in the recliner on the right in front of the bathroom door.  It was a surprisingly big room.)

Our morning started early - around 8:30 - when the doctors came to Sprout's room for rounds.  Steve slept while the attending & residents did their rundown of Sprout's situation.  I filled in information as it was needed.  They all agreed that she was a sick baby.  She would cry out in pain when they tried to touch her and she just overall looked and acted miserable.  Based on some blood counts, they decided to change her antibiotic regimen from Ampicillin to Vancomycin.  They knew she was fighting some sort of infection, they just weren't sure if it was bacterial (treatable with antibiotics) or viral (non-treatable). The rest of the day was a waiting game. We wouldn't know if it was bacterial until 24 hours after the blood cultures were started (which would be around 3am the next morning).

(What a trooper!  She loves to sleep with her arms up by her head, even with an IV!)

(Morning rounds - The guy on the left of the crib was the main resident we dealt with the most and the lady on the right was the attending.)

They day just consisted of nurses checking on Sprout's vitals, delivering her antibiotics every 4 hours, and us napping when possible.  We also received a surprise visit from our pastor and his wife - what a blessing those two people are! We had lunch delivered to the hospital from a local brunch place (breakfast nachos?! Delicious!).  Throughout the day, I was able to feed Sprout without any interventions (meaning, she always nursed when she wanted with no restrictions from doctors).  Steve was able to check in with work periodically and I mostly spent my day updating people on Sprout's status.

Later in the afternoon, one of the residents came in to let us know there was a hit in the blood work and that Sprout had Parechovirus.  It's a relatively new disease and appears differently in everyone.  Adults can be a carrier with no symptoms or have symptoms similar to a cold or diarrhea; however, it hits hard in babies.  We were then informed that they would continue the antibiotics until the 24 hour mark.  If the bacterial cultures were to come back negative, then antibiotics would be stopped and we would be looking at going home the next day.  Steve grabbed dinner in the food court for us (and discovered that the hospital only had diet drinks to offer, sorry Steve) and we went to bed as soon as Sprout was ready!

The next day, my good friend (okay, really I should just call her sister because she's definitely reached that status years ago) April came to the hospital to spend time with us and love on Sprout.  She got there just before the morning rounds started.  During the residents/attending pow-wow, we were informed that bacterial cultures were negative and antibiotics had been stopped.  Assuming nothing changed during the day, we would be discharged in the afternoon.  The doctors were all commenting on what a different baby Sprout was.  She didn't scream out in pain when they touched her, was much more active than she had been, and her fever was gone.

(Look how much better she looks! I never even realized how sick she was until she was healthy!)

(April meeting Sprout for the first time and giving her extra cuddles and love!)

They day seemed to go by quick (maybe it was the good company)! We were told to watch out for a rash, which did end up showing up.  The resident came back in and verified that it was just the next stage of the virus and that it was nothing to worry about.  The rash went away as quick as it came on (which was weird to me, but what do I know about viruses??).

(Rashy baby! The bottoms of her feet were bright red and you can see the rash in her elbows.  It didn't seem to bother her at all, and it was only around for maybe an hour.)

Before we left, April and I headed down to the rood court for lunch.  We grabbed some food and made our way back to Sprout's room.  Upon rounding the corner of her hallway (and in front of a big group of doctors), I unknowingly stepped in some water and immediately started to slide.  My hands were full (drink in one hand, boxes of food in another) and I all I could think of me landing on the floor with food and soda all over me.  Amazingly, I was able to catch myself and landed awkwardly on 1 knee.  We immediately busted out laughing, but not a single doctor said anything! It was so strange.  No laughs, no "are you okays?", nothing! If April wasn't there, I would've questioned if it had even happened (however, I did have a bruise for a few days proving that it did).

Sprout's doctors came for afternoon rounds a couple hours later and said we were good to go.  A nurse came in, took out her IV and we were out the door a little after 3pm.  We said goodbye to April and made our way to our favorite pizza place - Dewey's!  We got home a little after 6, and I had to quickly unpack and repack.  I headed out with Sprout the next morning and drove to my parents to be reunited with Bean.  She ended up coming down with a fever the next day and was a little irritable for a few days.  Boy was I glad to have my mom's help!

(Taking home a healthy kid!)

So. . . everyone asks, "Where did she get it??" The doctors answer was that we (Steve/I) passed it from Bean to Sprout.  They said it was transmitted via the stool (however, trusty old Google and even some of the hospital paperwork said it can also be transmitted via saliva - i.e. sneeze) and if you are keeping track, Sprout had it before Bean, so the doctors answer is bupkis. My answer is "Who knows, who cares?!" I'm guessing she got it from me (since I have most contact with her, and it's not like she could've just picked it up anywhere) and I got it from someone else.  I never felt sick (that I realized) and I'm guessing it's the same story for whoever I got it from.  I'm not a total germ-a-phobe after the fact, but let's just say, I've amped up hand washing and Purell usage :).