Two Steps Forward!

I have some good health news this week.

Tuesday I went in for my weekly "Tube Check" at the radiology Dept. The tube connected to the liver had drained practically nothing all week. We had good hopes going into the exam that the abcsess from the liver had closed off. I got positioned on the x-ray table, and they focused in on the liver tube. The Dr. injected the dye, and voila! No dye traced into the liver of biliary tract.!

The bowel tube had been draining a moderate amount for the past few days, so I knew there was no chance it would be removed. Sure enough, when the dye was injected into the bowel tube, it trailed back into the colon. We'll have to keep waiting for that one to close up.

Next they pulled out the liver tube. I wasn't too sure what to expect. They snipped the suture that was holding the tube in place, then the Dr. just pulled up on it, and it slid right out. It didn't hurt a bit! Wahoo!

Having the upper tube out is great I can wear regular shirts now. The lower tube still prevents me from wearing pants properly (Unless they are really super baggy, like my church pants.) I hope the bowel abscess closes off soon!

Today I had a visit with my Internist. He, too, was pleased to see the liver tube removed. After discussing things with him, he dermined that we could now eliminate one the IV antibiotics I have been receiving (Vancomicn). This was the IV that I had to do for two-hours at a time, twice daily. I will still get IV Ertapenam (which takes only 1 hour, once a day). I also am taking another oral antibiotic (Flagyl) 4 times a day.

The bottom line is that after tomorrow, I will only have to be on IV for 1 hour a day, intead of 5 hours a day. That will be another great step forward.

With these changes, it gives me a little more control over my daily schedule. I'm a little more comfortable, and I have a little more independence. Heck, I even was able to sleep in the bed for about half the night last night!