On the ventilator front, they have started something called "sprints." Instead of coming off the vent immediately, they're going to let his lungs (and associated muscles) get some exercise first. Twice a day, they turn off the normal ventilator and hook his tube up to a CPAP machine, which provides oxygen at a constant pressure. Instead of giving ten breaths per minute, it doesn't give any full breaths. Andrew has to do all the work of breathing, without any help beyond the constant flow. He came through is first sprint perfectly, sleeping through most of it and having no problems breathing. After a day or two at this rate, they would then increase the duration, frequency, or both. After a few days, he may be on sprints of three hours, three times a day. At some point, they'll be happy with his workouts and try him completely off the ventilator again. The exact timing will depend on which doctor is making the decision on any given day.
On the digestive front, he's also doing very well. The bile completely cleared up from his stomach secretions two days ago, they removed his nasal tube yesterday, and they started feedings through his G-tube today. They're starting with very small quantities, 1cc per hour, every hour. They call these small amounts "trophic feeds," used to stimulate his digestive system without actually providing any nutrition. They will keep this up until they decide to increase the volume; the timing again will depend on how he responds and which doctor is making the decision.
The surgeon came by this morning and removed Andrew's bandages. His new scar looks great and is healing nicely, though we noticed something a little strange. Since the incision included his belly button and was sewn back together straight, without taking his navel into account, I'm pretty sure he won't have a belly button when everything heals. In fact, if it heals well enough, maybe he'll look like this when he's older:
There's a lot happening all at once, but so far it's all good.
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