8/27/08 - Surgery Is Complete!!!

I am overwhelmed by all the comments today as Kayleigh had her surgery. The photo above was when we were prepping Kayleigh for surgery and transporting her down to the operating room. They had to "Bag Her"(manually breath for her with a pump) all the way down to the O.R . and even though she was fine and satting high, that was a very nerve wrecking experience. I guess when you associate CPR on television to practically seeing the same thing being done to your child, it is not so pleasant. While we waited in the holding room, shift change was taking place so there were people flying through the halls to get to where they were going. It made us so anxious and Aimee started to break down. Our room was open for everyone to see and Kayleigh surely caught the attention of everyone passing by because she is so tiny. We didn't want to leave Kayleigh, but we were ready to get out of all that madness. They took Kayleigh back to start the anesthesia, but we had to still wait for the doctor to come meet us. The surgery started a little bit later than expected and lasted around 4 hours total. Aimee and I are so grateful that my Mom and Dad were there with us to support us through this emotional time. They are so amazing and we owe them the world. Thank you guys!!!!

After the surgery, the opthamologist came out to speak with us and was so wonderful. She said that the surgery went very well. As she took a better look before they did surgery, it was clear that the ROP was in zone 2, but right on that zone 1 line. It was too close for comfort, but as she did the procedure, there were no issue of detachment which is awesome! They had to do over 4,000 laser burns in Kayleigh's right eye and just over 3,o00 in her left. The doctor mentioned that it would take a full 6 weeks to find out how successful the surgery was, but from her experience, she felt that Kayleigh will only lose a little bit of her peripheral vision in both eyes. PRAISE GOD!!!! Let's just pray that she is right and nothing bad changes in the mean time. They are going to check up with her weekly, so we should know if things are not progressing.

Once Kayleigh was back in her NICU spot, she was still knocked out by the anesthesia and pain medicine that she was on. We got to hold her little hand and wish her a good nights sleep. She is probably going to be on the vent for several days, but it was good to see that she as satting at 100% with oxygen at room air. I am sure that will not stay so good when the medicine starts to wear off and she starts to open her eyes. Her eyes have medicine all in them and she probably won't be seeing too clear when she opens them and that will irritate the mess out of her.

Overall, it seems that the surgery was a success and we hope things continue to be a success as the days go on. All we can do it pray and trust in God as He already knows the outcome. If you didn't read all the comments from the last post, please go back and read Candace's story about the footprints on the beach. It is so amazing and I about lost it while I read it to my Mom tonight. God is certainly walking with us right now as He continues to show Himself through Kayleigh. God is so wonderful and I can't say enough how important it is to have Him in your life as He will always be there for you and do great things!

I really want to thank the doctor for taking the time to talk with us last night and after her surgery. She was a ball of fire and we loved her to death. I can't say enough good things about her as she was unbelievably good at what she does. Without her expertise and steady hands, our daughter may never see and this doctor was a certainly a blessing to our family. She will have a place in our hearts forever.

Please continue to pray for Kayleigh that this surgery will be a complete success. We appreciate everyone being there for us! You all are so awesome!!

Love,

The Freemans :)