The antibiotics are waging war on the bacteria, and at 72 hours the bacteria is on the run. Unfortunately the little buggers are experts at hiding, kind of like Osama Bin Laden, they find remote caverns and can lay low for long periods of time. Intravenous antibiotics must be delivered for four to six weeks to be sure they are all dead. Thankfully that can be done as an outpatient. I may be let out tomorrow, but that depends on several factors.
Today the doctors wanted to assess the damage done to my heart tissues, particularly the valves, by these nasty bacteria. The test is called a Transeophageal Echocardiogram (TEE). A regular echocardiogram is similar to the ultrasound shown to expectant parents, good enough to see the major structures, but with all the ribs and other tissues, the picture is not clear enough. To get a better look, a TEE puts the ultrasound device very close to the heart, by sliding it down the throat.
The thing is about the size of a garden hose and it is in there for 15-20 minutes. So they gave me some awful tasting lubricant to help it slide down the throat, then thankfully put me under. I felt nothing at all of course, but my throat is a little sore and it hurts a little to talk.
Tomorrow I will post the test results.
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4 comments:
Well.... you'll for sure lose at ping pong now. I'm glad you're getting some much needed r&r... and good home cooking. Hope the test results are good and I'll keep a look out for the post. Let me know how we can help up here. cjl
Good earth, Ken--This is not how you wanted to be spending your holiday!! Will this impact your ability to buy my Christmas present? :-)
Get yourself better---much more important than worrying about anything here!
-Nelle
Well, that doesn't sound like fun at all.
Please take care of yourself, keep us posted and we hope to see you back soon!
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