My Miracle Anniek Who Has Tetralogy Of Fallot: Bye-Bye PICC Line

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Bye-Bye PICC Line

Anniek got her PICC line got taken out today!!! The Nurse Practitioner at the Cardiologist told Anniek it would not hurt to have the PICC line taken out, but Anniek being Anniek cried in preparation for it to be taken out. Suddenly while it was being taken out she stopped crying and said "ohhh this does not hurt" and the Nurse Practicioner said 'well I told you it wouldn't hurt" so when we got ready to leave Anniek gave the nurse practitioner an big hug and kiss before because it did not hurt. I am so glad that we have the PICC line gone, now she can go on the climbers at recess and she can participate in gym class as the school was so worried about the PICC line they wouldn't let her do that stuff.

1 comment:

ButterflyEffect said...: You must be so relieved that there is no more need for her PICC line! Hurray!; January 12, 2013 at 8:30 PM

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Anniek's Heart

Tetralogy of Fallot is a congenital heart defect (a problem with the heart's structure that's present at birth). Congenital heart defects change the normal flow of blood through the heart. This is a rare and complex heart defect. Tetralogy of Fallot is made up of four different heart defects that are:

Ventricular Septal Defect

The heart has a wall that separates the chambers on its left side from those on its right side. This wall is called a septum. The septum prevents blood from mixing between the two sides of the heart. A VSD is a hole in the part of the septum that separates the ventricles—the lower chambers of the heart. The hole allows oxygen‑rich blood to flow from the left ventricle into the right ventricle instead of flowing into the aorta, the main artery leading out to the body.

Pulmonary Stenosis

This is a narrowing of the pulmonary valve and the passageway through which blood flows from the right ventricle to the pulmonary arteries. Normally, oxygen-poor blood from the right ventricle flows through the pulmonary valve into the pulmonary arteries and out to the lungs to pick up oxygen. In pulmonary stenosis, the heart has to work harder than normal to pump blood, and not enough blood can get to the lungs.

Right Ventricular Hypertrophy

This is when the right ventricle thickens because the heart has to pump harder than it should to move blood through the narrowed pulmonary valve.

Overriding Aorta

This is a defect in the location of the aorta. In a healthy heart, the aorta is attached to the left ventricle, allowing only oxygen-rich blood to go to the body. In tetralogy of Fallot, the aorta is between the left and right ventricles, directly over the VSD. As a result, oxygen‑poor blood from the right ventricle can flow directly into the aorta instead of into the pulmonary artery to the lungs.

An Extra Heart Condition That Anniek Has Is Left Pulmonary Artery Stenosis

Pulmonary Artery Stenosis

Pulmonary artery stenosis is a narrowing that occurs in the pulmonary artery, a large artery that sends oxygen-poor blood into the lungs to be enriched with oxygen. The narrowing may occur in the main pulmonary artery and/or in the left or right pulmonary artery branches. This narrowing makes it difficult for blood to reach the lungs to pick up oxygen. Without enough oxygen, the heart and body cannot function as they should. In an effort to overcome the narrowing, the pressure in the right ventricle (the chamber that pumps blood into the pulmonary arteries) rises to levels that can be damaging to the heart muscle.

My Miracle Anniek Who Has Tetralogy Of Fallot

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Bye-Bye PICC Line

1 comment:

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