Today Matthew is getting his breathing tube put back in after being off it for 2 days. They made me leave the room for the procedure.

He is now 6 days post op and it seemed we had turned the corner to getting him home but this morning he just seems to be having too much trouble breathing and his heart beat is elevated. His tummy is still huge and they tell me that has been causing him difficulty breathing. They also tell me that its just going to take time to get the swelling out of his body but they also seem puzzled as to why his belly is so large. He has been spiking fevers about once a day and then the fever disappears.

The cardiologist mentioned that his valve leakage may be more than they originally thought. I'm fearful of a second surgery now. I just hope they are really telling me everything.

The nurses were unable to find a good vein so the doctor is putting a central line into his chest now that Matthew is sedated for the breathing tube insertion. He has a chest tube in the same location and is still draining quite a bit of fluid.