Addie Update: Check!

If you are able to fast, will you fast for our little Adelaide this next Sunday? We need an extra power boost in her behalf. Thank you for your continued prayers and support. Here’s her update:

If Addie played chess, this week she was an overloaded queen: A piece that has too many defensive duties. An overloaded piece can sometimes be required to abandon one of its defensive duties.

What defensive duty was abandoned: Digestive and Pulmonary. Instead of getting back to digestive system (tube feedings), her nutrition continues through IV vein delivery--day 19 of that. Instead of weaning off the ventilator, the settings have increased beyond what she needed even one week prior.

To avoid a dangerous and close-call of check-mate, Addie rushed back into square one on Monday: a return to her oscillator, nitric oxide, chest tubes, no more snuggle time with Mommy, and a continuous morphine drip. Additionally, her aggressive opponent would not give her any room to maneuver. Addie confronted her opponent's’ attack of low-blood pressure and sepsis (infection) with a pawn army of steroids and triple antibiotics. Additionally, she called in her knight to deliver another blood transfusion to keep her in the competition. She’s hooked up up to two delivery pumps with 8 different tubes delivering all her meds. She also received a double-lumen (6 port) PICC line this week after a successful PICC placement failed the next morning due to a leakage.

Her rook tried to fight off the enemy’s continual fluid build-up (up to 1 pound daily) using tools of albumin transfusions, electrolytes, diuretics. The rook did a good job on Wednesday by delivering FULL diapers. However, the rook couldn’t keep up with the flood of fluid that continued to come this week, so the rook was captured. The other rook continues to fight the flood with a new medication (Octreotide) which may help dry up the continuous edema accumulating throughout her body. So far, results have been minimal. Despite tube drainage, x-rays of the lungs show the opponent continues to attack with fluid in the pleural space.

Lastly, the enemy sent a wave of perceived seizures upon Addie this morning. Her castle responded by pulling out electrodes from the dungeon and placing them all on her pretty head. A video camera will now record jerky limb movements in correlation with brain electrical movement for the next 24 hours, while a epileptic tech at Primary Children’s Hospital monitors the screen and results of the brain activity scan. So far, Addie has not shown signs of brain activity through the tremors and “seizing”--telling the officials that movement may be due to an increased feeling of pain from the chest tubes/vent/et tubes/iv/and PICC lines running throughout her tiny body.

Officiators of the game may deliver a game-changer tomorrow when the results of a chest ultrasound are analysed. There is potential that the next tournament may be played at Primary Children’s Hospital.

Onlookers of the game are so proud of little Addie for choosing to stay in the game despite continual set-backs. We know she could just excuse herself from the game if she chose to, but she continues to play. We are so inspired by our little child. She needs your prayers. Thank you for your love and service to our family.