Category: heart

Julia & Jack

Echocardiogram Fun!

Yesterday was Julia’s appointment with the cardiologist.  It was a loooong appointment because it included an echo-cardiogram.  An echo-cardiogram is basically an ultrasound of the heart.  It took about an hour and a half to get all of the images that they wanted.  So, Julia had to sit still for that long while they rubbed jelly and the camera wand all over her chest area.  She was such a good sport!  After it was all done, we were told that they usually have to sedate children Julia’s age.  I feel that she has to sit still for so many things involved in her CF care that she is simply used to it.

The best part of the appointment was when we were told that her heart looks normal.  Yay!  Talk about a big sigh of relief.  We did learn some new things.  A new bit of knowledge…cystic fibrosis can sometimes cause heart problems.  Another thing to add to the already long list of problems that CF can cause in the human body.  We were told that with chronic lung disease, inflammation occurring in the lungs can sometimes restrict blood flow and cause it to back up in the heart, leading to heart problems.  I think this was the fear and concern with Julia.  The echo-cardiogram ruled out these concerns as everything looked good and completely normal.

Yesterday was a good, but exhausting day.  Austin and Olivia had their parent-teacher conferences this week and they are both doing wonderfully.  All the kids are enjoying a sleep-over with their cousins, while Joey and I enjoy the silence of an empty house.  It’s actually kinda of eerie…silence.