Wacky pathology jokes

At this point the pediatric pathology department is clearly playing a cruel joke, the butt of which is undoubtedly me.  I was mad at first but I guess if anyone needs a good laugh, it's those guys.

I checked in with our CNP in GI again yesterday and while she still has not received word from The Pathologist regarding the polyp, she did thank me for my patience.

So, after the obvious, did they lose the biopsies(?!) my question is this: Am I to believe that hidden deep in the recesses of one of the world's best funded hospitals for children there resides exactly one pathologist?  The backlog truly must be enormous.  With resources so strapped, is he working by candlelight?  No wonder there isn't time to reply to email since the time change.  Dusk comes so early these days.  Has anyone considered the idea of hiring a nurse? an assistant? how about an intern to answer emails?  Heck, maybe it's time to throw caution to the wind and bring in another speech therapist while we're at it.

The anxiety of the past two weeks is waning only because my body can maintain that level of stress for this duration.  Basically, I don't have that kind of time. 

Fortunately I've been able to refocus my efforts on trying to discern the strange bumps and blotches on Roo's back following patch testing this week.  For those of you unfamiliar with patch testing, imagine 30 tiny, dime-size cups of various substances (oh you know, chicken, green beans, fish, wheat, that sort of thing) adhered with surgical tape to your back for 48 hours (see Exhibit A).  Stinky? A bit.  Uncomfortable? A little.  Informative? We'll see.  Roo goes for his final reading with the allergist today.  To me it looks like something flared overnight, but as we all know, I've been wrong before.

Exhibit A

GI Update

Thanks for all the well wishes for Roo's Friday GI appointment!  Overall things went as expected with a few surprises. 

As far as the GI doc is concerned, Roo's growth is following a curve.  He's not following "The" growth chart, but he is growing.  He weighed 20 pounds 15 ounces and that put him on a tiny slanting upward arc from where he was three months ago at 19 pounds 10 ounces.  Forgive me for not mentioning to the doctor that the previous weight was taken while he was naked and this one while fully clothed and diapered.  I was all too absorbed by the fact that his height has increased to 32.5 inches which is, drumroll please......officially on "The" chart.  In fact, it's 10th percentile for his age on the chart.  That's non-adjusted for prematurity, regular old 24-month old American boy height.  Yup yup.  Take that size 12-month pants!  We're moving up to 18-months...as long as we can find adjustable waistbands. 

The general consensus is that the eosinophilic esophagitis is not causing his vomiting anymore.  Unless we alter his diet drastically, which we have not, the EoE is not likely to be causing many problems at the moment.  There is no clear single cause for his eating issues and food aversion but rather a combination of EoE, regular food allergies, oral delay, reflux, and his learned avoidance behaviors. 

The recommendation is to see a feeding team.  We have a referral for a different GI doctor who specializes in food aversion.  He works as a team with a gaggle of other specialists - speech therapist, occupational therapist, nutritionist, psychologist, etc.  While Roo has seen all of these therapist types before, the beauty here is that they are all part of an integrated team.  We'll see how it goes. 

Roo will return to his old GI team for an EoE check-up and allergy testing in about six months.  Until then it's status quo for his diet - no eggs, nuts, milk, or beef, and full steam ahead trying to get him to eat, enjoy eating, keep food down, gain weight, and grow.  No problem I'm sure. 

The final surprise of the appointment was that our current GI doctor is leaving Children's Memorial.  I'm not thrilled since he's been good to us, and the fact that he is young, Indian, and has little twins of his own didn't hurt his reputation in our house.  In retrospect, however, I'm not so sure how I feel about him performing Roo's last surgery a couple of weeks after bringing his own newborns home.  Anyway, he's heading out of state to a clinic that currently has no EoE specialist.

Countdown to GI

Roo goes to the GI specialist this Friday.  So much for our 6 week challenge.  It seems we have failed miserably yet again.  He has gained a measly eight ounces in the three months since his last endoscopy and boy did we work for it!  We were doing so well there for a couple of weeks but as usual it's three steps forward, two steps (sometimes many more) back. 

He is twenty pounds.  Exactly twenty pounds.  Did I mention he'll be two next week?  All I'm hoping for now is a small, but acceptable, increase in height, since we've been accused of stunting his growth.  Okay, maybe not "accused" persay, but I wish they'd stop bringing up his shortness as a concern.  I mean, have they looked at Mufasa and me?  And technically, he is on the chart for height.  Nothing wrong with third percentile.  Nothing at all.  Besides, his pants look a little shorter, though they're gaping at the waist more than ever.  Thank goodness for adjustable waistbands or he would be sporting a wardrobe full of dresses and tunics.  At least they'd match Looly's sparkly shoes he loves so much. 

In a final effort to plump him up an ounce or two before the big weigh-in I've been focusing on some old favorites this week.  Pasta with turkey bolognese, rotisserie chicken drenched in dairy-free margarine, dairy-free mini-chocolate chips, heavily "buttered" rice, avocado in what else, olive oil dip, and strained raspberry coconut milk yogurt with scoops of soy formula stirred in.  Anyone care to join us for dinner?

Chicken pot-pie earlier this week was a hit.  As it turns out, Pillsbury ready-made pie crust is vegan and nut-free.  Very exciting news in our house.  I put it all on the line last night, however, with some citrus mahi mahi that was not well-received by anyone under age four.  Tonight it's lamb tagine, but I will safely serve plenty of oily couscous and buttery broccoli on the side.  In case of an emergency I have some meatballs at the ready in the freezer.  Keep your fingers crossed.  We have 45 hours and counting to give it our all and keep that dreaded feeding tube at bay.  Chants, vibes, wishes, prayers - whatever you've got to encourage "no more vomit!" are greatly appreciated.