Skip to main content

Kidney Update

Its been some time since I gave an update on the state of the kidneys. The short answer is that there is no change. Things are stable on both fronts (my sons and mine), and we are moving forward with finding a donor for my son.

The details are that my nephrologist has been threatening to do a biopsy for about six months. He's finally asked me to do it, some I'm trying to get the HMO to pay for it and the hospital to schedule it. Since I only have one kidney, they will not just poke a needle into my abdomen. My options are either laporoscopic surgery under full anesthesia or something new, called a transjugular biopsy. I understand that the second option means sticking a tube in my jugular vein and threading it into my kidney. Supposedly, its less invasive and does requires only local anesthesia. Oh joy!

On Asaf's side of the board, we are moving forward with our donors. We sent the test results for three people to the hospital. They finally called us up and asked us why we kept sending more donors. We said something about how we wanted to get the transplant done with the best possible match.

The hospital finally scheduled us for a meeting along with two of three donors. They also agreed to test Asaf and the two donors to find out if there is a match. The doctor who called us could not understand how we had so many people willing to donate a kidney. I think we will invite her for our thanksgiving dinner. Perhaps she will then understand the closeness and support that exists in our wonderful community!

Things seem to be moving a bit faster now, so I'll try and update as we receive more news.

Refuah Shelema to all those in need.
Elliot

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A change of pace (Kidney Failure)

I have been trying to keep this blog focused on hospitality and food.  God though has other plans for his creations and I find now that I will have to expand the scope to cover new topics.  I'll try to continue blogging about my menus and our guests, but expect more posts that have little or nothing to do with food. In February of this year, My second oldest son, Asaf was diagnosed with Chronic Renal Failure. Simply put, both his kidneys are damaged and scarred from some infection or defect that happened years ago.  They will likely cease to function sometime within the next six months. The good news is that there is no immediate danger to his life.  Kidney Dialysis is a viable option and can maintain his health for up to ten or more years if necessary.  Unfortunately, the process is not easy and there are potential side effects. Given Asaf's generally excellent health and age, Kidney Dialysis is considered only a stop-gap measure and not a long term solution. The best solutio

B"DE Clark Evenchick

B"DE = Baruch Dayan Emet, Blessed is the truthful judge. This is the traditional jewish response to hearing that someone has passed away. My friend Clark Evenchick passed away last night. He suffered for a number of years from ALS. His passing is both a loss and a blessing. We will miss his wit and his powerful presence. On the other hand, ALS is a terrible disease for both the patient and their family. As the body becomes less responsive, the family and caregivers need to spend more and more time providing physical and mental support. Clark's passing frees both himself and his family from this disease. Clark built our house. At one time, he ran a construction company. Clark was not only an honest contractor, but also a joy to work with. At a time when most houses took up to two years from ground breaking to residence, Clark built our house in 7 months. Whenever there was a problem, we were more than comfortable telling him to find his own solution. I believe that

TX +2 days

The transplant was on Monday afternoon. As I write this, its Wednesday afternoon. Call it 48 hours since my son received his new kidney. My wife and I are taking shifts at the hospital. She had the first night, I had the second. Tonight is her turn again. I just got back from the hospital and that's why there have been no posts. There is no Internet in the transplant ward. Medically, my Asaf is doing VERY well (as is the donor). When we went in, Asaf's creatinine level was about 6.4 mg/dL (GFR: 12). It means that his kidney was pretty much not doing anything. Today, we got the latest results. His new creatinine is 2.03 mg/dL (GFR: 46). That's better than my own and almost in the normal range (0.9 - 1.2 mg/dL). Each day its getting better and better. What this means is that his new kidney is working! He is able to eat a normal meal and is no longer on a restricted diet for kidney disease. This is great news! Our next hurdle is to make sure that his body does not reject the n