SETTLED IN FOR THE NIGHT...........

Wow!  What a wonderfully amazingly successful day.  The surgery went well and they were able to insert the Melody Valve.  Coop did fantastic!  While Coop was in recovery we reviewed the films with the doctors.  It is always amazing to see the films and the more we look at them the better we understand.  Prior to today there was substantial blood flow back into the Ventricle, so much in fact it nearly filled the ventricle entirely.  After surgery there was very minimal back flow at all.  In fact, what we were seeing was probably due to the cath tube.  It was amazing to see the difference.  So things went very, very well.  It is almost funny how giddy his doctor was after his procedure.  They were laughing and chuckling and just visually excited.

Coop had to remain lying flat on his back with no movement of his legs for 6 hours.  The holes where they inserted the cath tube are large and they had to make sure they did not start bleeding.  This was what came to annoy Coop more than anything.  Initially he slept a lot and then when he did wake he had little to nothing to say.  However, around 8:30pm tonight he started asking if he could sit up.  Finally about 9pm they said by 9:30pm he could sit up.  So right at 9:30 Coop says, "The big hand is on the 6!"  We couldn't help but laugh.  He was so excited to sit up, it's always the small things.

Although everything has been pretty smooth, he did have to give us one scare.  He had been awake for a bit and had drank apple juice.  He seemed to be doing well when he told me his chest hurt.  He has complained of his chest hurting for so long I asked a few questions and then told him I would let them know when the nurses came in but basically I disregarded it.  Well now, the nurse was in the room and Coop started saying his chest was hurting and it was no joke.  He was wining and wincing and then became super flush and started to shake.  This place filled with the medical team and they started running tests.  After a short time the pain subsided and everything went back to normal.  The doctors consulted and ruled out a heart attack or stroke or anything like that and decided just to monitor him.  Luckily it hasn't happened since.  He is very flush at times but we figure it is just due to the anesthetics.

The first words Coop said after surgery was, "I'm real hungry!"  I cannot tell you how happy I was to hear that!  Coop will have to take it easy through the weekend but should be good to go by Monday!  He will now be on a 1/2 aspirin and be required to take antibiotics any time he visits the dentist but that's it.  Nothing more.  We do not know how long this valve will last him but figure the conduit will wear out before the valve.  The conduit that had been placed in his heart at the last open heart surgery was 16mm.  The y placed the Melody Valve inside the conduit and the Melody Valve is 18mm.  So as you can see there is already some restriction on the Melody Valve but it should still last for some time.

Tonight we had special visitors!  Aunt Steph and Uncle Cody!  We all were happy to see them!

We are so thankful for all of this good news and cannot wait to get home!