The Only2Degrees Blog

On the Road to Recovery… and Home!

only2degrees — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:57:07 +0000

Day 12: I saw the doctor today and it looks like I will be headed home tomorrow. The trick, however, is that he wants a PIC line put into my arm so that I can have 2 more weeks of intravenous antibiotics. Turns out, the MRSA is sensitive to Vancomyacin, which can only be administered by IV. So, I will need to spend over an hour in the morning and again in the evening getting my meds. Thankfully I can do this in the comfort of my home, and not in a facility. After I get the PIC line, which was an amazing procedure (thanks to Con Nuygen, the best PIC line guy ever, so I “named” my PIC line after him!), I spent much of my time walking with and without crutches around the hospital. I even had a chance to sit outside (in my infectious disease garb, though). Oh, and did I mention that it’s cookie and lemonade day at the hospital? This place rocks!

Day 13: We are packing up to go home. The doctor has removed the bandage and is very pleased. He only has about 3 or 4 stitches to close it up, because he wants it to remain open for awhile to continue to “weep out” the “goo.” Surprisingly it doesn’t hurt. My biggest concern now is the MRSA, not the surgery scar. I could care less if it was a hole in my leg – heck, I have my leg! But if MRSA gets out of control, I could lose my life.

We are a bit challenged today, though, as we are trying to coordinate getting home and still getting my IV meds. I can’t miss a treatment, which is every 12 hours. How am I going to get from Vail, Colorado to California, which is a 15 hour drive?

As we hit the road at about 11 am, I get on the phone to the insurance company to find a place in Las Vegas that can administer the meds. We get permission from the doctor to miss 1 treatment only, so we decide to take the evening off. We drive to Vegas, stay at Planet Hollywood, get up early the next morning, head over to the IV facility (did you know they actually have places that administer just IV meds??). After about an hour and a half, we are back on the road headed home.

But before I tell you about what happens when I get home, let me just say that the IV facility was a real eye-opener. Here I was, feeling a bit depressed about having to administer the meds 2 times a day for 2 weeks. Shoot, this was going to take a chunk out of my social life! But while I was there, I met 2 women – one who was 29 with Multiple Sclerosis and one was in her 60’s with cancer. They will have to endure these treatments for the rest of their life. Suddenly my annoyance isn’t so annoying. Meeting them was such a blessing and I think about them often.

Being Admitted in the Hospital for Leg Surgery and MRSA Treatment

only2degrees — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 02:41:42 +0000

Day 9: When Scott and I entered Vail Valley Medical Center in Vail, Colorado, I couldn’t have been more scared. The only time I had ever stayed in a hospital was when I had babies. This was new to me. There were expecting me, so they took me immediately to a room that had a better view than my resort room! There was a queen size sofa bed and a flat screen TV! Not too bad, I thought. Within 15 minutes, they wheeled me up to the pre-op area and I met my surgeon, Dr. Viola. He took one look at the wound and wanted to know “what the heck happened?” The look on his face made me wonder if this was more serious than a quick fix. So I asked the question that was nagging me, “Am I going to lose my leg?” “Slim to none,” he said, “But you’re not going anywhere for awhile.” He explained that they were going to wash out the leg, put in a vacuum pump for 2 days and then take me back to surgery. If I wake up with the pump still in my leg, it would be another 2 days and another surgery. Deep sigh.

I woke up from surgery and felt pretty good, believe it or not. Dr. Viola’s fellow, Dr. Boykin, told me the surgery went well but they wouldn’t know until the next surgery if I could go home in less than a week. I left the recovery room and they wheeled me back to my room. I was hooked up to an IV now, something that would be a part of my life for several days. They were “feeding” me Vancomyacin through the IV, which happens to be one of the very few antibiotics that MRSA will respond to. Known as the “Elephant Gun” of medications, it’s also very dangerous to your kidneys. I’m still in disbelief, but I know that I’m in good hands.

Day 11: It’s been 2 days and I’m heading back into surgery. I’m hoping I don’t wake up with that darn vacuum pump in my leg. It’s really holding me back from getting around! Well, that and the fact that I’m considered “infectious” so I can only leave the room dressed in some dumb yellow coat and gloves. I still haven’t had a shower. If the pump comes out, I can actually wash up.

In the pre-op room, I’m getting nervous again. Before I know it, they are taking me into surgery and I wake up in recovery – without the pump! Woohoo!

Warning! Photo may scare you!

An extended vacation… at the hospital! (Spider bite Part 2)

only2degrees — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 08:00:34 +0000

An Extended Vacation – at the Hospital!

Day 6: I am on Bactrim, but the redness on my leg is not disappearing. It’s actually getting larger. I head back over to urgent care, where a new doctor quickly determines that there is an abscess that must be drained immediately. Panic sets in. So, for my first request: “May I have a Xanex, please?” Next, the doctor pulls out a long needle and proceeds to numb the lower part of my leg. With my eyes closed, and my husband holding my hand, the doctor drains the abscess. He inserts a “wick” in the hole to soak up all the puss and bacteria over the next 2 days. He swabs the wound for a culture, wraps my leg, and sends me away with orders to return in 2 days… the same day we are leaving for home. That night, Scott and I, as well as our dear friends, Jim and Lee, take the ski tram up to the top of Vail Mountain for dinner. Thank goodness we did that, because the next day I couldn’t walk.

Day 7: We leave for home tomorrow. And worse yet, our friends have to leave home today, a day early, because Hurricane Irene is headed for their home state of New Jersey. This has been an interesting vacation, to say the least. Because I can hardly walk, Scott swings by the urgent care to pick up some crutches. While he is there they confirm that I have “moderate MRSA.” What the heck? How did I get that? I’m healthy, I have excellent hygiene, I take good care of myself… now I’m seriously worried. MRSA (a serious staph infection, also known as the “super bug” because it is resistant to many antibiotics) is nothing to mess around with… it can be life threatening and very dangerous. I try to relax for the day, knowing that I am on the right antibiotic for MRSA, and that tomorrow we will head home… or so I thought.

Day 8: We decided to pack up the truck before going by the urgent care for a quick check up. But, as it would turn out, it was not a quick check up. Seeing another new doctor, he pulled back the bandage, and the nurse gasped. She told him that my leg had not looked that bad only 2 days earlier. There was dead tissue now surrounding the wound. He told the nurse to get the hospital on the line, specifically an orthopedic surgeon. I could barely hear the conversation, but it didn’t sound good. The doctor came back into the room and told me the news, “You need to go to the hospital immediately. There is a surgeon waiting for you. He will be washing out the wound and determining the next line of treatment.” I had to ask, “Will I be going home today?” “I don’t know,” he whispered. So, just like that, we were off to Vail Valley Medical Center. (to be continued)

Is it a spider bite or what?

only2degrees — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 08:00:23 +0000

Day 1: It appeared the morning that Scott and I were leaving on our road trip to Avon, Colorado. It was on my right leg, about 3 inches above my ankle to the left of my shin. One looked like a mosquito bite and the other like a spider bite. They both itched and both had a little white head. Nothing unusual… just simply annoying.

Day 2: By the next morning, the so-called “spider bite” had spread to an area of 2”x2”. And it still itched. At this point, I was a bit worried, but I just assumed it would take care of itself in time. We drove to Denver Airport to pick up our friends from New Jersey, who were joining us for the week. On the way home, I noticed that the bump was starting to become raised. Odd, I thought. But I was still not worried.

Day 3: My leg is not any better and it actually bothers me to walk on it. We headed off to Super Wal-Mart for some groceries, so I stopped in at the pharmacy to get the pharmacist’s opinion. He told me to ice it, put on topical Benedryl and take Advil. Oh, and have a nice day. Being the good girl that I am, I followed his directions to the tee.

Day 4: In the middle of the night, I started to feel feverish. I couldn’t sleep and my leg was aching. Something is wrong… I just know it. So I post my status on Facebook (you know, there are a lot of smart people on Facebook!) What was the primary response? You were bit by a brown recluse spider, get to the doctor immediately! Also, a few friends said something about MRSA (a serious staph infection). I couldn’t imagine that either one of these was the problem, but a fever is not a good sign, and that I DID know!

Day 5: By morning, I had had enough. With the boys off to do some fishing (and hopefully catch dinner), I headed over to the local urgent care. The doctor drew a circle around the red area and put me on an antibiotic. He told me to return tomorrow. Little did I know that this is when the nightmare would begin… (to be continued)