Sunday Afternoon

UPDATE

Dr. Cummings felt we were having another GOOD DAY. 2 GOOD DAYS.
- Kidneys improved -- a reading of her (insert proper medical term here) went from 2.4 to 1.7 which is GREAT.
- Liver is Better
- Breathing - Good.
- Waiting on test results from fluids.
- Problems: Low Blood Pressure and Low Platlet Count.
- Not sure of Tracheotomy at the moment. Will update when we know.

thankya

SUNDAY MORNING COMING DOWN

kris kristofferson wrote that song about being hungover and feeling bad, but today, we feel PRETTY GOOD.

- Lori had good night and is sleeping well this morning. we didn't wake her.
- TEMP is low-grade (101 and below) which is OK. better than previous mornings
- Kidneys are stable which is GOOD
- Still needing BLOOD PRESSURE Medicine (pressor). Docs may replace current one with another one.
- White Blood Cell Count is DOWN which is GOOD
- Heart Rate is lower, which is GOOD.
- No results from fluid Cultures, yet.
______________________________

Thankyou for your continued support and well wishes.

johnny, shorty, and patti

3 out of 4 Doctors are optimistic

Sat. APRIL 29. 3:30 pm EST

we've gotten some mixed signals from some doctors, but overall we feel that lori is better today than the last 3 days of no progress.
1. Dr. Cummings, who is her surgeon (and has been overseeing everything, keeping us informed daily, and is a great guy, by the way) said she made "significant improvement" since yesterday.
2. The kidney specialist thought there was improvement.
3. Dr. Bill Henry (patti's brother) thought that things were better based on what we've told him.
4. However, her pulmonologist (lungs) said: that we were "not out of the woods"; that he was not concerned about the small amount of mucus in the lung area; he was concerned about the infected fluid in her abdomen; that he was concerned about lack of hemoglobin in blood; and that he is waiting to see the results of the culture of the fluid withdrawn from her abdomen today. he was generally not positive.

FRIDAY
- Doctors withdrew .5 liters of fluid from around her lungs. We are waiting for results of cultures to determine the degree of infection.
- changed main veinous line from left shoulder to right shoulder. we are hoping that was source of some infection causing spikes in temp.
- doctors worried yesterday of continued infection causing the spikes in temperature.
- doctors removed "art" line from her right line (used to read blood pressure) and are now only using a cuff (wrapped around her arm).

TODAY - SATURDAY
- doctors withdrew 800 cc's of fluid from abdomen. waiting on cultures/tests.
- kidneys GOOD
- Platlets not as hight as desired.
- white blood cell count down, which is GOOD.
- Blood Pressure good, but she is still requiring medication (pressors) to maintain good level
- TEMP was good today : 98-99
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THANKS
johnny, patti, and shorty.

ICU - Day 14. Friday Afternoon.

-- Had initial Surgery 2 WEEKS ago Today.

-- TEMP was high this morning - 103. Down to 99 now.
---> Doctors trying to determine the cause of the spikes in TEMP.

-- Slightly Dehydrated this morning.

-- Still SEDATED, but she seemed aware of us this morning. She tries to talk to us, but cannot due to intubation. Frustrating for Lori and us. According to nurses, she won't remember any of this. We'll see.
---> I played her some Al Green on the CD player this morning.

-- Until her Stats are better, Doctors will not perform the TRACHEOTOMY which is tentatively scheduled for MONDAY.
________________________________________

THANK YOU to all of you for your continued support.

Johnny, Patti, and Shorty.

THURSDAY NIGHT. APRIL 27, 2006.
Hi, this is johnny (lori's brother). Thanks to Debbie Wynn at CNN for coordinating with some other folks at CNN to set up this WEBSITE and the introductory information.
THANKYOU to all of you for your kind words, thoughts, prayers, offers of help, etc. It has meant the world to us.
LORI's friends in Atlanta have been tremendously helpful (doug lindauer is her favorite, of course, and he's here while i'm typing and needs the ego-boost) --- also, a special thankyou to the many people at CNN where Lori works.

MEDICAL STUFF:
-Overall, Lori is doing better than she was when she checked into the hospital. However, the damage done to Lori as a result of SEPSIS has been severe and requires a very prolonged recovery. She is still in ICU and will be for at least another week, possibly two.
-It seems that every day is a balancing act between the medicines and Lori's system's ability to support itself. Some days are better than others.
- Kidneys and Lungs are performing adequately, but doctors would like to see marked improvement.
-Lori is still intubated with a ventilator. Doctors say Lori needs a TRACHEOTOMY to prevent internal tracheal scarring due to the intubation. A "Trach" leaves a scar, but Doctors agree that a "Trach" is preferable to intubation at this point for various reasons. However, Lori had a "Trach" after her accident in 1991, as well as a procedure that removed part of her trachea. Consequently, Doctors are being cautious as to when and how to perform the procedure. Lori's various stats are not yet at an optimal level to perform the procedure, so doctors are waiting until then.
- Lori is still being sedated, but has been relatively responsive to us the last couple of days. she is unable to speak to us due to the intubation, but has answered a few questions by blinking her eyes. Though mostly, she just looks understandably frustrated and confused.

CURRENT STATS:
-heart rate has gone down, which is GOOD.
-Blood pressure is BETTER today.
-Blood Platlets are UP today, which is GOOD.
-TEMP was 102 this morning but is down to 99 now.
-Have had problem with some slight Internal BLEEDING
--> Docs found some small Stomach ULCERS which they are treating with meds. These ulcers could be the source of the bleeding, but we are not certain. Docs are considering other options on Friday.
-EYES are good. They have been really bloodshot and swollen, and we were concerned about damage. a specialist examined them and assured us that they were fine.
-Friday, Docs MIGHT 'tap' the fluid around her lungs and in her abdomen to determine if that is source of her spikes in TEMPERATURE.

Our Friend Lori

On Friday, April 14th Lori underwent emergency surgery at Northside Hospital after suffering from a perforated intestine, resulting in SEPSIS -- which is infection in the blood stream causing various reactions in the body (lowered blood pressure, elevated heart rate, altered white blood cell count, and can cause organ failure). Lori remains in ICU battling a variety of complications, but is holding her own and demonstrating the fighting spirit we have all come to know and love in her. Her family is here and staying with her each day. Because she is in ICU, she is not able to receive flowers, cards, or visitors. Once she is better and in a private room we can flood her with all the cards, gifts, flowers and visits that the hospital will allow. Until that time the best thing we can do for her is to keep her and her family in our thoughts and prayers daily, and to visit this page to post our well wishes and get updates on her condition. Her family will use this site to keep us informed and to let us know what we can do for them. Lori is special to all who know her. Her family appreciates all the love, support and caring that has been shown to them. Please join the multitude of family and friends who care about her and leave your comments here where they can be shared with Lori as soon as she is feeling better.

Instructions for leaving comments

Here are the steps:

• Underneath any Post, click the Comments link
• Type your message to Lori
• Under "Choose an Identity", click Other
• Type in your name and click Publish Your Comment