Conventional Ventilator - PICU Update # 7

     The past days have gone well for Ethen. The medical team has taken things slowly and let Ethen lay his own course. Yesterday the team thought Ethen was in a good position to make the change to the conventional ventilator. We made the change mid-afternoon. After the transition to the conventional ventilator we also weaned Ethen's paralytic meds. Ethen did wonderfully. It was encouraging to see him wiggle his toes and fingers and move the muscles in his face. We praise the Lord for this.
     This morning we received a good report from the resident. Ethen's early morning X-ray showed improvements since yesterday, which is great because it indicates the conventional ventilator is supporting Ethen's lungs well. The resident this morning told us, "Ethen's X-ray looks awesome." Ethen will continue on the conventional ventilator for at least another two days during which we'll conduct pressure trials to ensure Ethen is ready to transition to the next step toward recovery.
     Please continue to pray for improvements in Ethen's lungs. There are some pockets of atelectasis (or collapsed alveoli). Please pray he makes a full recovery. Pray also that he can stay comfortable. Since coming off the paralytics and some of the sedatives, Ethen is more alert. I can only imagine how scared he is that there's a tube down his throat and that he can't swallow like normal. Pray he has peace and that he can stay comfortable.