Monday, July 3, 2017

A Little Gas... a Lot of Trouble

Because Wyatt is tube fed, it means he receives all of his nutrition through his feeding tube. In addition to his feeding tube, he had a Nissen Fundoplication (often referred to as a fundo) completed as well. A fundo is an intensive intervention to treat gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). The procedure involves the upper part of the stomach being wrapped around the lower end of the esophagus, reinforcing the lower esophageal sphincter. In non/medical terms, it means part of his stomach is wrapped around his esophagus. It prevents the reflux from going into his esophagus and causing additional pain. It also means he can't burp or vomit. Although there have been many people who have blown through their fundo because their reflux is that bad. Wyatt's surgeon told us to be sure he doesn't party too hard on his 21st bday or he will end up getting his stomach pumped. I may or may not have cheered inside hearing that because that means I can give him a medical reason to never drink in excess. Mom win. 

This kid is gassy, though. Since he can't burp on his own, we have to assist him with it. That's called venting his g. It involves putting a large syringe in his g port and opening the port. The air bubbles will come through and essentially we've burped him. The funny thing is, it sounds like a burp and I have a really crude sense of humor and giggle every single time. Wyatt does too, but I can't tell if it's because he is getting relief or if he thinks burps are funny too. 

The other hard part with Wyatt's feeding is that he's actually not fed into his stomach, he's fed into his jejunum which is in the small intestines. So if the problem is that far "down the line" we can't burp him, he has to release it from the bowel. Again. This kid is gassy. So sometimes we can't give him relief and he's sort of miserable until he can get it out in his own. He also giggles at this. I do too. 

Here's a picture collage of before venting and after. 

He's miserable. We vent. He "burps". We laugh. He does too. Life is good again. 

Sometimes this process happens in the middle of the night and venting gets a little messy because stomach contents are flying and you're practically sleep venting, and well, it ends with the bed, kid, and sometimes adult covered in vented goodness. 

But he's relieved and so are we. 

I tell you this to share the medical side of Wyatt, too. His feeding tube literally saved his life and has played a huge part in the progress he's made, but it's not without consequences. He's attached to a feeding pump 20 hours a day, we have to time baths, swimming time, medicines, travel, etc around his feeds. But, he's growing and thriving. And happy as can be. 

As parents, we can't ask for much more. 




1 comment:

  1. Twenty months was when Ethan started to think farts were funny. I'm glad Wyatt thinks they are funny, too.

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