Shunt Scare

We had a pretty big shunt scare yesterday, but luckily everything turned out okay. When we gave Callie her bath Wednesday I noticed her lower back looked a little puffy. It did not seem to be bothering her so we waited until the neurology office was open in the morning. They were concerned that her shunt was not working and fluid was building up on her spine. We rushed to Children's ER at their advice. They also thought it could be a shunt malfunction. Apparently there was no hurry though because we waited almost five hours for an MRI. I tried to maintain my patience, but it is extremely frustrating to wait that long when the possibility of a shunt malfunction is very real when we've been whisked into MRIs for ER visits having NOTHING to do with her shunt. Her ventricles looked stable. They did a shunt series X-ray and it showed no clogs or kinks. So the shunt is in working order (yay!). The neurosurgeon on duty came to look at her and informed us that it is not a pocket of fluid but is more likely a part of irritated tissue from a recent virus. Well okay! We're still getting over RSV (can last 2 to four weeks in some cases) AND she just received her one year shots on Tuesday. Either or both of those things could be the cause. We were released with instructions to keep an eye on the are and to schedule a full MRI with sedation soon.

I am quite thankful, as my mommy guts told me something was wrong and I dreaded the thought of her having surgery. Besides, her hair is finally growing over her shunt and you can barely see it, give the poor girl a fashion break! Now we are just looking forward to the weekend a lot of baby cuddle time.