Latest Medical Update

As previously discussed, The Girl is suffering from a blocked kidney. After a variety of tests (which were fascinating, BTW - involving radioactivity and radiation), the cause has been determined: an approx. 7 mm kidney stone is blocking the ureter which would otherwise drain her right kidney. Given its location, ultrasonic destruction is not a useful option. So, on Wednesday, the dear girl will be catheterized, and a laser beam will be used to break up the stone. If the procedure is monitored with ultrasound or x-ray, I expect it will look something like the animated simulation at right. So, the good news is that the surgeon does not intend to create additional openings into my daughter as a means of correcting the blockage. Additional good news is the speedy approach to the fix. Downsides: discharging lasers inside my first-born, and that, given the location of the stone, it's somewhat likely that fragments will end up back inthe kidney, and may begin acreteing (sp? wow!) minerals, or will need to be passed naturally. We look forward to the safe and speedy conclusion of this, and plan to increase The Girl's water consumption dramatically for the foreseeable future.

I plan to spend a lot of time on the simulation in case an emergency requires me to perform the procedure. Feel free to join me in my practice.