11/19/2012 Update
Written Nov 19, 2012 8:59am
Kristine is still in the ICU at Hoag Hospital. They are trying to get Kristine's blood gas down. She has too much carbon dioxide in her system (respiratory acidosis) and they have her on a bi-pap machine forcing oxygen into her lungs in an effort to lower the CO2. When she arrived at the ER, her blood gas was at 106. They got it down to 81 using the bi-pap machine. Hopefully I'm interpreting everything correctly. If not, forgive me.
Trying to get Kristine to keep the bi-pap mask on her face is not easy. Imagine driving down the freeway at 80 mph with your face out of the window and the wind blasting your face. Not only would it be hard to breathe, your mouth would dry out instantly. Well, they want her to wear this mask on her face with only one quick swab of her mouth every 2 hours to help the dryness. It's absolute torture! It's heartbreaking to watch her suffer like this.
Yesterday afternoon she became agitated and wanted to be released against the doctor's orders. She was begging and pleading with our dad, "Daddy, please, please, take me home! I just want to go home!” It took a while, but my dad was able to calm her down. Dave convinced Kristine to stay and try the bi-pap another day. After all that, her blood gas was back up to 99.
So last night they gave Kristine a very mild sedative. It helped relax her and she slept the whole night. I was so relieved. The nurse said she was expecting a significant drop in her blood gas. We were devastated to find out it hadn't dropped.
So they bumped up the setting on the bi-pap from 18 to 24 and ordered another blood gas check in an hour. After she rested with the bi-pap on 24 for about an hour, her blood gas only dropped to 96. FYI, normal blood gas level is 20, but for Kristine, her normal is somewhere between 65-75.
So now we're waiting to speak with the doctor to discuss what the options are at this point.
