Kidneys- Hydronephrosis

I know this blog is technically about Dallin's cleft, but today I'm going to write about his kidneys. For those who don't know about Dallin's kidneys, read about them here.

We went to Primary Children's today to do some testing and meet with a pediatric urologist. I was apprehensive about the appointments. As strange as it may sound, I was mostly worried that they wouldn't find anything wrong. Or rather, wouldn't find what was causing the kidneys to be dilated. Greg and I wanted answers. A solution, so we could start working towards it. The unknown is scary.

We started out with a lasix renal exam. Dallin was given a catheter and an IV where a dye was placed in his blood stream. They then took pictures of the kidneys every 15 seconds for 45 minutes. This was to determine if there was a blockage. Poor Dallin had to have weights on his arms and legs to keep him from moving. That combined with the catheter and IV made him a very angry boy. It was heartbreaking to see him cry! We got him calmed down with some flavored syrup on a binky. He looked at me with teary eyes and had the saddest face! Like, why are you doing this to me?! Poor baby. (I failed to mention to him that this was mild compared to what's coming in a few weeks:))

After that procedure, he had a VCUG to check for reflux. This one didn't need an IV and was much shorter, so it wasn't as bad.

We ate lunch at the hospital and then met with the urologist. Funny story; the lady called us back to meet with the urologist. He came in and talked to us a bit and then started bringing up the x-rays to look at. He asked us where "the name" came from. Thinking he meant Dallin, we said we just liked it. He clarified that he meant our last name. Greg said something about he thought it came from England originally or something. I didn't realize Pickett was so weird, so I thought it was a weird question. Then he started showing us the x-rays and eventually we realized, "that's not our child!" He had the chart for someone with a last name that had like 20 letters in it, mostly consonants! No wonder he wondered about the last name! He probably thought we were weird when we said it originated in England:) The kid's first name was Galwyn, and when the lady called it, we thought she said Dallin. Looking back, we cracked up thinking what they must have thought when we stood up when they called for a Galwyn Leevxanoino- or whatever it was. There was an Asian family in the waiting room as well. It must have been them. Whoops! Well, that's one way to be seen faster:)

ANYWAY, when we finally had the right chart and x-rays, the doctor discovered that Dallin has a blockage at the uteropelvic junction, or UPJ. That is at the base of the kidneys, as they connect with the ureters. The blockage is preventing the kidneys from eliminating the urine like they should. Normal elimination time is 12-15 minutes. His right kidney is eliminating in 22 minutes, and his left is taking 89 minutes! Yikes! However, his kidney functions are well within normal. So now we wait and watch. There is a 50/50 chance that he'll grow out of it by age two. If at that point it is still a problem, he will have a surgery to remove the part that isn't working. It doesn't sound like a pleasant surgery- he'd be in the hospital for a few days. But we are very happy that it is not something more serious! Definitely something we can handle. Since the blockage is up by his kidneys, he isn't at a high risk for infection so he can be off the daily dose of antibiotic. Another yeah!

Primary Children's is such a hard place to be. There are so many children there fighting serious problems. It always breaks my heart to see the children, and to see parents crying in the hallways. We feel so blessed that our visits are for minor things.

Well, Primary Children's, we'll be back soon. Not looking forward to our next visit. But grateful that we got answers today!