Riding the NICU Rollercoaster

They have always told us the NICU is like a roller coaster. Today we went for another ride. We were very excited this morning when we learned that Faith is off of CPAP and on Nasal Cannula. This was a huge answer to prayer. Faith is working extra hard now- you can hear her struggle to breathe. The day was very positive until Faith received her eye exam. We received the worst possible news- Faith was level 3 ROP (Retinopathy of Prematurity) with Plus Disease. ROP is an eye disease of the eye that results when there is abnormal growth of blood vessels. If left untreated this stage of ROP can quickly lead to blindness (this is how Stevie Wonder became blind). Fortunately the doctors caught Faith's ROP and it will be treated with laser eye surgery. There are draw backs to the surgery including loss of peripheral vision. The surgery may require general anaesthesia, which would mean that Faith would have to be re-intubated on the ventilator and would have to be weened off again. They are going to try to sedate Faith without the general anaesthesia to prevent this. The surgery is scheduled for Friday morning.
In Faith's 9 weeks of life she has beaten he odds and overcome tremendous challenges. We believe that this is just another testimony Faith will have!!
Thank you for keeping Faith in your prayers this week!
Brian and Jen