11-18-2003, Day 249, Week 36 (Tuesday)

 Hello,

Since getting Robbie home we were starting to get into a routine when everything let loose at 4:00 in the morning yesterday (Monday). I got home from work around midnight and Robbie was doing fine. Marleen was up around 2:30 and he was still sleeping very calmly. I got up to go to the bathroom at 4:00 and heard Robbie breathing very fast. He was breathing at a rate of 75 respirations a minute, 175 beats per minute on his heart, blood pressure was up and he was sweating like crazy and very tense. We have been through this before with him and these signs usually mean he is coming down with something like an infection. I tried to calm him and keep monitoring him. I got his rates to drop a little but nothing I was comfortable with. At 5 in the morning I finally called 911 to have him taken to the emergency room. We had the fire department with their fire engine arrive followed by the rescue unit. They checked Robbie out and off to the hospital we went. Once at the ER his rates had dropped a little. His Temperature was up so the ER Doc that it was probably an infection. He has the treach, stomach tube and catheter in him..... anyone of those things can be a source of infection. The Doctor asked us how long since the catheter was last changed. We told him it was changed last on October 29 (two weeks ago). He said it might be a good idea to change it and ordered it to be changed. They drew an array of blood samples and started IV fluids on Robbie. The nurse brought in a new catheter and pulled the old one out....... that’s when Robbie let loose and Peed all over the emergency room. His catheter tube was plugged and the pressure was building since the early morning hours..... No wonder all his rates were up.... my rates would be up too if I couldn’t let loose and the pressure was building... it just hurts thinking about it.... poor guy. Well at least we learned something new from this experience. He also has a urinary track infection, which they are treating now. He spent last night in the hospital and might spend a couple more days here to make sure he doesn’t have any more infections. Robbie almost made 2 weeks at home. He is resting very well now in his wheel chair.

Love,

John, Marleen and Karen Grinnell

Just click on the link below for his web page:

www.robbie-grinnell.com