Daily Status UpDade - Thursday, 8/21/14

As of about 5:30 pm, Dade is off the ECMO machine!  The measure of how he's doing off of the machine is the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) in his blood stream.  The nurse just checked his first blood gas after coming off. So far so good!  I'll update here as we go along.  No news is good news, so if there are a few gaps, that will be why.

Update, 7:45p: Dade's last 2 blood gas checks show his CO2 in the desired range.  Dr. Anderson came by and told us that if he holds up tonight, Dade will have his cannulas removed tomorrow.  Leaving them in feels like a safety blanket, but they could allow air or a clot to travel to his brain or heart if not taken out.  They're staying in tonight just because of Dade's prior happenings when he came off ECMO the first time.

Update, 9:15p: Last couple of blood gas checks have been good!  Hanging in there like a champ.  He was a little sweaty, so the nurses changed his bedding and pulled off a couple of blankets to help Dade cool down. Seems a good bit more comfortable!