Owen - Irish meaning young fighter

The past 24 hours have been great for Owen (and for us). The sedative seizure medication has been stopped, making a huge difference in his demeanor. He is opening his eyes, squirming, getting mad, and making lots of faces. We are very excited and reassured to see this progress. In the picture you can see the tape for his feeding tube, which he has taken to very well. The amount of feedings have been increased each day, allowing one of his IV drips to be removed and the other to be decreased.

Tracy and I got a chance to sit down with Owen's attending doctor today. We had many questions and he was able to give us a better idea of the sequence of events and an overall view of the bigger picture. At this point, we believe that Owen will be able to come home after further work at the hospital with sucking, muscle development, and holding his core temperature. This probably means a few more weeks in the NICU. Once home, we would watch him as he grows for any developmental issues. Most likely, he will remain on the second seizure medication (Keppra) when discharged from the hospital and will continue the medication at home.

Dr. Reese stated that if discharged today, the diagnosis would be infant seizures with no known cause. In his summary he also said that at some point after the final ultrasound Owen's growth unknowingly became restricted and he did not get all the nutrients needed. The short explanation is a lack of nutrients set him back a few weeks in development and he is now getting treatments similar to that of a preemie.

In the short term, we are praying that his seizures have stopped, he will gain his sucking motion to feed, and he will be able to maintain his core temperature. For the long term, we are praying that the effects of these issues will not keep him from living a full healthy life.

We want thank everyone for the prayers, food, messages, phone calls, and many well wishes.

Jonathan