"Perfect ECMO Patient"

Lincoln's surgery to come off ECMO was a complete success today. There were no complications during the surgery and Lincoln was off by about 1pm. His stats are good and his oxygen saturation is 100%. The doctors needed to turn up his ventilator settings just before the surgery to give Lincoln a little more support during the surgery. They are going to watch him overnight and not make any changes. He has had a big day! The nurse said that he was the "perfect ECMO patient," meaning he was on for about 2 weeks (the average time) and he was able to wean without any issues. They only needed to add one medicine to help Linc's heart work more efficiently in order to wean. (Compared to the nine meds he was on before ECMO support!) He responded just as they anticipated while on ECMO, for the most part.

The goal for diaphragm repair surgery is to get his vent settings lower (Linc being more stable, needing less support). They anticipate him being a little sicker after the repair, so they want to be able to go up on the vent to help him oxygenate his body. Moving all of his bowel and liver down to it's natural position in his abdomen during the surgery will push his diaphragm up into his good left lung, making it difficult for him to breath. As his abdomen stretches to accommodate the new contents, breathing will get easier for him. The doctors expect it to be a few days until Lincoln is ready for his repair surgery. It is so wonderful that Lincoln is progressing in the right direction. He has been through so much in his short first two weeks of life. He is the strongest little man I know!