After several days of not really knowing what was going on things seem to be moving along now. Last night they inserted the PICC line so no more IV's for me.
All fluids and antibiotic and whatnot can now be administered through the PICC. They will still have to stick me for Vancomycin levels but not for IV's or any other blood work.
The radiologist read my MRI and I do indeed have an abscess on my knee. They said that it looks like it may be caused by one of the "bio-absorbable" screws from my ACL surgery last September. Seems the screw may not have absorbed. So it probably got infected and I ended up with MRSA or whatever antibiotic resistant bacteria it was and it caused the cellulitis that overtook my lower calf. The cellulitis is slowly receding back towards the site of the growing abscess. Providence has consulted with my knee surgeon and he is going to come here and see me and decide what they want to do.
The good news is that from what they can see on the MRI the abscess does not seem to involve the joint or the bone. If it did that would be a very serious issue and I would probably be sitting in this hospital on IV antibiotics for several weeks. That would have been a bummer to say the least.
So I am now NPO and basically awaiting surgery at some point today to deal with the abscess. As far as I know I will be here at least a few more days.
.
4 comments:
Yuck. What a situation to be in. You have my profoundest sympathies to be stuck in a hospital with all this going on, when it is summer. Somehow this wouldn't be so bad, it seems, if it were, say January, or November, maybe when there's nothing much going on anyway. But summer is so fleeting and so precious there, it kills me that you are losing days of it. On the other hand, better than losing your leg by NOT taking care of it, I suppose. I just feel for you that you have to go through this. And you have NO idea how happy I would be to be sitting in a chair at your bedside, reading Moby Dick to you, or bringing you fries with salt and ketchup (because then it would mean I was in AK instead of NY!) Hang in there.
CD
Hi Cathy, we are grateful it wasn't in the joint either-I would have come up with some "bad joint" jokes for sure! You not able to handle a bad screw; well hell woman, that could happen to anyone.
OK...so, your cottongrass won first place, and of COURSE I didn't take ANY photos of anything, so I suck.
#1 - Cotton grass - $100
#2 - Irises (my fave) - $75
and #3, I forget! haha maybe Sivisuaq! I'll look for them and email them to you.
OK...feel better and I will fast with you.
What a way to herald the summer in Alaska. Bummmmer!
I got a kick out of you circling all the places they'd poked you with needles, lol, and am glad they finally got a port installed so they wouldn't have to continue that. Sheesh.
Praying that abcess will clear up quickly, and that you'll continue to get better fast and will soon be on the mend.
Post a Comment