Specialist Update & Vasa Previa Info
We went back to the specialist this morning for a scan and an update. We were super excited because my amniotic fluid was up to 11 (record high for my hospital stay). That means the fluid stayed high throughout the week without an IV.
Jack looked great in the monitoring and the blood flow in the umbilical cord looked good.
The blood vessels that give me the vasa previa diagnosis are still sitting right by my cervix, which is also right by Jack's head.
Since my fluid has been more stable this week, I've been more focused on gaining a deeper understanding of this diagnosis and what all it means. I made the mistake of googling (against Justin's guidance...) and have also had more conversations with the doctors & nurses. So here's some info for those who are wondering what exactly has me in the hospital for this extended amount of time.
- Vasa previa means I have blood vessels in the wrong spot and they're between Jack & my cervix.
- The blood vessels contain Jack's blood so if they're ruptured, it's his blood that would be lost.
- Vasa previa is extremely rare (about 1 in 3500 pregnancies)
- My specific case is technically a "functioning vasa previa" because the blood vessels are not on the cervix, but within 2 cm of the cervix (currently sitting about 8 mm away).
- There are a variety of things that could cause bleeding (Jack's movement, contractions, too much movement on my part, pressure, etc.) and bleeding will result in an emergency c-section.
- The doctors won't let me carry Jack past 34 weeks because if my cervix becomes dilated or if I start having contractions, the blood vessels are likely to rupture putting Jack in harm's way.
So all of this seems a bit scary and when I jokingly told my doctor that I made the on call doctors nervous she agreed that I definitely did. I told this to a nurse who said I make everyone nervous. I'm truly one of a kind!
All that being said, everything I've read is extremely promising when this condition is diagnosed prenatally. My doctors are not only following all of the recommendations, but they tend to err on the conservative side of the recommendations.
There is also a solid plan in place in case bleeding occurs before a scheduled c-section and all of the doctors and nurses are rooting for Jack to make it as far as possible.
We continue to take it one day at a time and celebrate each day that passes. My personal goal right now is to get to the 30 week mark (September 6th). That will be our next goal to celebrate, with the main goal of 34 weeks still in our sights.
Jack looked great in the monitoring and the blood flow in the umbilical cord looked good.
The blood vessels that give me the vasa previa diagnosis are still sitting right by my cervix, which is also right by Jack's head.
Since my fluid has been more stable this week, I've been more focused on gaining a deeper understanding of this diagnosis and what all it means. I made the mistake of googling (against Justin's guidance...) and have also had more conversations with the doctors & nurses. So here's some info for those who are wondering what exactly has me in the hospital for this extended amount of time.
- Vasa previa means I have blood vessels in the wrong spot and they're between Jack & my cervix.
- The blood vessels contain Jack's blood so if they're ruptured, it's his blood that would be lost.
- Vasa previa is extremely rare (about 1 in 3500 pregnancies)
- My specific case is technically a "functioning vasa previa" because the blood vessels are not on the cervix, but within 2 cm of the cervix (currently sitting about 8 mm away).
- There are a variety of things that could cause bleeding (Jack's movement, contractions, too much movement on my part, pressure, etc.) and bleeding will result in an emergency c-section.
- The doctors won't let me carry Jack past 34 weeks because if my cervix becomes dilated or if I start having contractions, the blood vessels are likely to rupture putting Jack in harm's way.
So all of this seems a bit scary and when I jokingly told my doctor that I made the on call doctors nervous she agreed that I definitely did. I told this to a nurse who said I make everyone nervous. I'm truly one of a kind!
All that being said, everything I've read is extremely promising when this condition is diagnosed prenatally. My doctors are not only following all of the recommendations, but they tend to err on the conservative side of the recommendations.
There is also a solid plan in place in case bleeding occurs before a scheduled c-section and all of the doctors and nurses are rooting for Jack to make it as far as possible.
We continue to take it one day at a time and celebrate each day that passes. My personal goal right now is to get to the 30 week mark (September 6th). That will be our next goal to celebrate, with the main goal of 34 weeks still in our sights.
Comments
Post a Comment