There were no big surprises for us. I knew what they were going to tell me before they said it. Everything looks good, but there are a few areas to watch out for. Owen's foramen magnum (the opening at the base of the skull that allows fluid to drain)has closed a bit and at 50 cm (19.5 inches), his head size has spiked on the charts. Also, his ventricles had enlarged since his first MRI at birth. This means that there could be some cerebrospinal fluid trapped in Owen's brain. All these symptoms point to a risk of hydrocephalus so our neurologist wants us to keep an eye on it. Simply put, hydrocephalus or "water on the brain" means that there is an abnormal accumulation of fluid in the brain. This could cause problems from clumsinesss to learning disabilities. The common treatment for hydrocephalus is a placing a cerebral shunt into the ventricles of Owen's brain to help drain the fluid. Our neurologist, Dr. Garton, was not concerned enough to take any action but wanted to see us back in 6 months for another MRI (Blue Cross should love that!).
Dr. Garton takes a conservative approach when it comes to shunting. He feels that kids with achondroplasia are shunted to early and too often and prefers to watch and wait. Dan and I appreciate this. We don't want to go mucking around in Owen's brain if we don't half too! The down side is that while waiting to see how Owen does, his head could keep getting bigger where a shunt would slow the growth. Once again, however, Dan and I would rather buy bigger hats then have an unnecessary shunt put in.
We will have to watch motor delays, numbness of the arms and legs (how the hell will we be able to tell that?!), obvious pain, clumsiness (hmmmm, we may already be there) and other signs that something may be off. Luckily there are no restrictions for him. He can still go to PT, play, walk and do everything he normally does. So all in all, pretty neutral news. Like I said, it's exactly what I expected. I have seen a growth in Owen's head but not any worrisome symptoms, so I suspected that this is what they would tell us. Dr. Garton did notice his lumbar kyphosis (cuvature of the spine), but didn't think it was bad and said it will most likely go away as he starts bearing more weight. We have made an appointment for an orthepedist in mid May, so we will get some more info then.!
Arrggg...I totally forgot my camera that day so I can only show you the latest pictures!
This was after the MRI. They put him under a general anesthesia. Hmmm...do you think it had any effect??
Last Thursday, it was Farm Day at the school Owen goes to for PT....He made some new friends!
Owen -that's one big...rooster!
4 legs good, 2 legs bad!
Suddently craving mint jelly...
Owen found his favorite animal!
8 comments:
I'm glad to hear that you only received "expected" news from the MRI. Peyton went through that last summer, and for 6 months I had to bring her every week to have her head measured. We go up to Baltimore in June for all her appointments, and hopefully we don't get any surprises either!
I love the farm day pics...Owen is such a handsome boy! Thanks for sharing!
Danielle
Owen is stinking cute. My son JD is going through the same things as Owen. We actually got 3 opinions to make sure we were on the right track. We are! Glad to hear you are too.
Great pics of Owen at farm day. He is really a cutie!
Cat,
Can't help you with the medical stuff because Preston only had one scan at birth. Has Owen's head jumped a curve within 1-2 months? if not I would think he is grwoing like a typical achon head! Preston's head slowed down between 18 months and now, maybe only growing 1/2 to 1 centimeter in a year. Owen's noggin does not even look that big to me. I am glad you have a conservative doctor and not an alarmist! We have had enough of those!
Now onto the pictures-Owen is so adorable-the yelling picture is priceless, but the one in his pjs is so precious!
Hey!!! Leah love that animal too, great pictures.
He's so handsome! My son has the same PJ's...his favorite. =)
Don't you hate that medical stuff that comes along with the achon territory!? It's all so scary and you just want to make sure that you are doing the best for your child...We have another MRI in a few months too! Going to get a second opinion out in Los Angeles when I go home in a few months. I just want to make sure we are making the right decisions :) Owen sure does get cuter and cuter every day!! We are coming to your neck of the woods next weekend! I wish we had time to meet!!
I'm finally catching up on blogs and have been quite behind. It's good that the news was what you had expected. Course, we're always hoping for "better than expected," but you'd prepared for it, and you're doing ALL of the right things. Hang In There!
Lisa
Glad to hear his MRI went well!!
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