Ileus

Today has been a very difficult day.


Yesterday, the naso-gastric tube to Master's stomach fell out. The doctors had contemplated taking it out anyway, but it came out entirely on its own. That seemed like a good thing at the time, and during the balance of the day, they removed the catheter. This morning, they discontinued the IV pain medication, and He was allowed to begin taking clear liquids by mouth.


By mid-day, He was begining to belch, hiccup, and vomit up significant quantities of liquid. The nurses tried administering a couple of different nausea medications along with Nexium. Those medications helped for very short periods of time, but each time, the vomiting resumed within the hour. Finally, at about 9:00 this evening, the night nurse decided to call in the doctors, and they ordered some x-rays. That showed an ileus. An ileus is a paralysis of the bowel -- without the normal peristalsis, nothing passes through the digestive tract and pressure builds up in the stomach. It seems that this is a fairly common aftermath of handling the bowel during abdominal surgery.


Sigh.


So. Tonight, they have reinserted the naso-gastric tube. Once it was in place, the pump immediately suctioned 700 cc's of fluid from His stomach. He is disappointed as this will surely keep Him in the hospital for another 2-4 days. On the upside, He is not vomiting anymore, and we didn't end up going home without anyone knowing about this issue -- a sure recipe for making another midnight run to the emergency room.


He's tired. I'm tired. Our spirits are a bit low. Hopefully, soon, we'll be able to settle down for the night and try and sleep. Hopefully, tomorrow will be a bit better.


swan