"There is some slight improvement in Edi's condition. Let me give some background info, first. I tried to follow what the doc explained htis afternoon and could have gotten some info wrong.
As Edi's lungs are not breathing, he's put onto this advanced but noisy ventilator. Edi is also put into a deep sleep so that he doesn't hear the noise and becomes agitated - the doctors don't want him moving about. Due to the pressure created in his chest, being on the ventilator, it's difficult for blood to enter and leave his heart. The heart needs fluids to help move the blood along but not his lungs. We saw the nurse start a blood transfusion this afternoon. They need the fluid to keep the b/p up but with this, haemoglobin goes down. So, there is this tension pocket and ICU has to keep the lungs and heart happy with both organs having different requirements. Being on the ventilator, they also find it necessary to support his blood pressure with drugs.
Looking at my beloved bro, I feel intense pain and deep sorrow because his body is bloated due to fluid retention. There are also tubes here and there going into his body, nostrils and mouth. As I describe this to you, my tears are welling up. I try to seek comfort in the fact that he is asleep and oblivious to all these.
The slight improvement that I spoke of above is that last night, they reduced the operating capacity of the ventilator and Edi's breathing been holding up. They will progressively turn down the operating capacity until a level when they are comfortable to change the advanced model of ventilator to another one that is quieter. Then they will bring Edi out of the induced sleep. This is good because the less need to introduce medication into his system, the better.
The next concern then is to determine if he sustained brain damage on Tues when the complications first arose. So, it's still some way to go but the improvement (slight as it may be) is significant and critical. The doctor agrees with my choice of words, they are proceeding with "quiet optimism" although there's still a long way to go. "
http://www.svhm.org.au/
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