Lydia has had a few episodes of emesis (vomit) in the past few days. This is concerning because her laryngomalacia (floppy larynx) could cause her to aspirate, or get the vomit in her lungs when this happens. We have changed the placement of her nasogastric feeding from her stomach to her intestines to see if she handles it better. So far so good, but that means she may be having a re-flux reaction to feeds in her stomach.
What's all this mean for Lydia?
OT says it is not safe to try to bottle feed her right now, so that is on hold. ENT did an upper GI study on her today to ensure there are no blockages or other issues. We have switched her feeds from every three hours to continuous since intestines are not used to separate feeds like stomachs are.
Dr. Vaughan, my favorite ICU doctor, says there are 4 options for feeding Lydia and we are working on finding the best and safest one for her. Option 1 is Lydia feeding strictly from a bottle, but it is off the table since it is not safe for her right now. Option 2 is a hybrid of bottle feeding and nasogastric feeding, which is also off the table because oral is not safe for her. Option 3 is continuing just the nasogastric feeding, and Option 4 is a Gastrostomy feeding tube placed directly into her stomach on her belly. We will know more soon.
What's all that mean for Lydia?
It all means that we need to feed her safely so she can grow out of the laryngomalacia and start to feed orally. It also means we need to get this girl home!
...and on a happy note, our baby girl is one month old tomorrow!
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