Friday (5/23) was one of the longest days of my life. Mom went to the hospital three days ago with a high fever and chest pains. It developed that she had a urinary tract infection and a heart attack. They statrted her on an agressive antibiotic regimen and decided to wait two days to address her her heart condition (they were worried about how an infection would complicate possible surgery). Mom was scheduled for an angiogram yesterday a.m. They found two blockages one operable and the other not. They tried angioplasty (stents) but were unable to penetrate calcified artery. Cardiologist then gave us a choice - do nothing (least risk and at her age of 83 could be O.K. but her quality of life would degrade and she would probably die in a few months. The other choice was to do open heart surgery but that choice carried a 25% risk that Mom wouldn't survive the surgery. However if she survived, she has an excellent chance to recover and live for several more years. We chose to take the risk.
When they opened her up, they discovered a new complication that raised the risk much higher. Mom's aortic valve (the primary exit frrom the heart of oxigenated blood) was almost completely sealed shut. This fact meant that in addition to doing a bypass, they also needed to replace the faulty valve. They finished the surgery at about 6 p.m. yerterday. We praise God that Mom survived the day yesterday. She is in critical condition and has yet to regain consciousness but her vital signs are slowly improving. It's such a source of peace to us all that Mom is a strong believer and like Paul yearns to meet her Lord. For today however, we are grateful for God's mercy and grace and the strength to deal with whatever develops today.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Yesterday would have been much tougher without knowing that you were standing with us. For now it's one day at a time.
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