Monday October 18, 2010
Today was our trip to the Pediatric Cardiologist. Ben sent an email to family explaining the details so…  I’ll copy that here:

Jana and I took Rose into the Children’s hospital early this morning (thanks Brady for staying the night and watching the kids when they woke up!) to get additional tests. They hooked her up for an EKG test, which she didn’t mind until they were done and started pulling all those little tabs off her… that she hated!

The Doctor confirmed that she does indeed have a ventricular septal defect.
(animated diagram if you are interested http://goo.gl/9JEs)

She has three holes in the wall separating the two lower chambers of her heart. This isn’t the common “heart murmur” you often hear about that 30% of the population has, which is what Packer was diagnosed with. That one is in the upper chambers.

Although less common, the doctor didn’t seem overly concerned after he checked her out and asked us a ton of questions. Now that we know what we’re looking for, she does show some symptoms when she is nursing. She often loses her breath and has to stop and catch some air. The doctor compared it to jogging for an adult. Since babies don’t do much except “sleep, eat, and poop” – in his words – what gets their heart pumping the most is nursing. When the blood mixes between those two chambers, the less oxygen rich blood gets back into the stream, causing the shortness of breath and a need for more oxygen. We’ll keep an eye on her. The doctor wants to see her in 3 months, but we’re not overly concerned. Just wanted to let everyone know.

Keep her in your prayers for us. Thanks!

7 lbs 12 oz, 21 inches