Posted by Becky
Yesterday's chest xray shows that Leif now has diffuse pneumonia. He's going to get an echocardiogram today, to see how his heart is handling the stress. They're also going to start him on steroids, to help with oxygenation. The plan is keep supporting him until he responds to the antibiotics and his white blood cells start coming back. His neutrophil count is up a little bit, and his platelets are holding steady; typically platelets are the first blood cells to come back, so that's a positive sign. If you'd like to send good juju, give an encouraging cheer for Leif's bone marrow.
Last night his oxygen levels dipped, so they put him on a different oxygen mask style (a stylish white plastic handlebar moustache) and gave him a nebulizer, which helped. If his oxygen levels dip too low, they'll put him on a ventilator, but that hasn't been necessary yet. Some of his lung congestion may be due to excessive fluids, so they're putting him on a diuretic during the daytime. He'd like to hold off getting diuretics at night if possible, because it's hard to sleep when you have to pee every 20 minutes.
Leif's not bouncing back from visits the way he was earlier, so please call before coming by to see him.
Yesterday's chest xray shows that Leif now has diffuse pneumonia. He's going to get an echocardiogram today, to see how his heart is handling the stress. They're also going to start him on steroids, to help with oxygenation. The plan is keep supporting him until he responds to the antibiotics and his white blood cells start coming back. His neutrophil count is up a little bit, and his platelets are holding steady; typically platelets are the first blood cells to come back, so that's a positive sign. If you'd like to send good juju, give an encouraging cheer for Leif's bone marrow.
Last night his oxygen levels dipped, so they put him on a different oxygen mask style (a stylish white plastic handlebar moustache) and gave him a nebulizer, which helped. If his oxygen levels dip too low, they'll put him on a ventilator, but that hasn't been necessary yet. Some of his lung congestion may be due to excessive fluids, so they're putting him on a diuretic during the daytime. He'd like to hold off getting diuretics at night if possible, because it's hard to sleep when you have to pee every 20 minutes.
Leif's not bouncing back from visits the way he was earlier, so please call before coming by to see him.
It's surprising that Leif has time to pee given alll the drugs he has to take.
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