As with any surgery, Milo could not eat anything after midnight. We needed to be to the hospital to check in at 6:30. We were nervous about him being starving and crying - but our little champ surprised us again. He slept from 9PM until 6AM. We had to wake him up to put him in his carseat and head out the door. Surgery was scheduled to start at 8AM and at 7:58AM we were walking down the hall with the anesthesiologist towards the OR. Talk about being on schedule.
We went to the waiting room and were anxious to hear if milo would be woken up and have the procedure cancelled or if he would finally get his spinal cord fixed. After being in surgery for 1 1/2 hours we finally felt like he was doing well and they decided to proceed. Uncle Matt came up to the hospital and sat with us for a few hours. It was so nice to have him there and supporting us!
We got a call around 10:30 from the nurse in the OR and she said that everything was going great and that the doctor was just finishing up and it would only be another 30-60 minutes before they were done. At 11:00 Dr. Brockmeyer came and got us to tell us details about the procedure.
He was able to completely untether the fat mass from milo's spinal cord and was also able to remove a considerable amount of fat from the bump. Before, during, and after the surgery milo was hooked up to electrodes that they would occasionally shock to make sure that the spinal cord, brain, and muscles were all communicating the way they were supposed to. Dr. Brockmeyer told us that he got great responses from every region while doing this except for the sphincter region. The sphincter controls bladder and bowel function. The lack of response during the procedure doesn't necessary mean that he won't have control over these things, but it means that it's something we need to watch out for and pay close attention to as he gets older. But, all of his other muscles and neurological responses were great!
By 12:00 we were up in our recovery room and he was getting comfy in his new room here at primary children's hospital. He has been in quite a bit of pain, but they have been giving him lortab as often as they can. He has to stay completely flat for 48 hours after surgery. He is almost always laying on his tummy except for when he is eating, then he's flat on his back. His eyes have begun to swell and get red due to all the pressure on his face and head. Hopefully the swelling can be controlled for the next 24 hours until he can be in other positions.
We are expected to stay here for 3-4 days while he recovers and then we'll be able to take him home for the remainder of his recovery.
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