Thanks for everyone’s support, well-wishes and prayers during Myka’s bile duct procedure and hospitalization today.  Her “liver numbers” (ALT/AST/GGTP) have trended back down into normal ranges, but there’s still some bile duct dilatation (slight blockage / narrowing) attached to the liver that’s concerning.  The surgeons were able to successfully place her biliary drain and associated stent to decrease the bile duct narrowing, release the pressure and allow her bile to flow freely outside her body into a bile bag. (Details in the paragraph below)  While it took Myka a while for her to bounce back after the anesthesia and being without food (NPO), we’re thankful there were no complications thus far with today’s procedure.  Myka’s recovering nicely in her private room on the the Transplant Floor here at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.  She kept all her food down, including Chipotle rice (thanks Aunt Missy & Aunt Amanda!) and is relaxing watching her iPad this evening.  This is her first hospitalization since being potty-trained, so the getting in and out of bed with a sore stomach is something new.  We’re thankful for a hard, but good day!

Today begins the start of an ongoing procedure for Myka, called “PTC” or (percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography), which is a series of multiple, specialized x-rays on the liver and bile ducts with injected dye.  A thin, flexible tube was placed in her bile ducts / liver in order to let the bile drain into a collection bag outside her body.  Every two weeks, she’ll come back to Children’s, go NPO, be placed under anesthesia, head back to Interventional Radiology (IR) and they’ll increase the size of the stent until the bile ducts have expanded to normal size.  The ongoing PTC and bile bag journey could last for as little as a month or as long as several months, depending on how her bile ducts respond.  This could be something that’s simply a part of her post-liver transplant journey every couple of years as her body grows and new liver adapts.

Obviously, Myka is somewhat limited with activity during this time, as she needs to play it safe physically with an additional tube running out of her stomach, and she’s not able to submerge in water, like bathing or swimming.  If you’d like to join us in prayer – here’s a few requests:

• PRAY for our family to adapt well to this “new-normal” with the bile bag and for Myka to regain her stamina in the next 24 hours and regular routine with meds, eating & sleeping.
• PRAY for rest and no complications overnight, so that she can be discharged from the hospital tomorrow.
• PRAY specifically against the increased risk of infection with this new, internal tube
• PRAY for the bile duct narrowing to return to regular size with the help of the stent and for continued, stable “liver numbers” in the coming weeks.
• PRAY that the bile duct issue would resolve sooner (in a month), rather than later (multiple months)

We hope to report a discharge from the hospital tomorrow and a smooth transition to this new-normal in the coming days and weeks.  Thanks for following along on the journey with us!

Pressing On – Richie, Regan, Alivia & Myka