Day at the Doctor

First of all let me say that my tattoo post was an April Fool's joke! I did not go get the Cullen crest tattooed on me last night! It was a fake one and I thought it was kinda funny. As much as I love Twilight I'm not a big enough fan to actually get it tattooed on me! So Happy April Fool's Day!!!

On on much more serious note, Gianna had her tests today at the hospital. She was very brave and I'm super proud of her. She did cry, very hard, during the VCUG which I expected because I knew not only would it be a little scary but it would hurt some too. She cried so hard she burst some capillaries under her eyes so she has red "freckles" now. But she was still liked they asked her to be and she actually liked the Ultrasound pretty well, they let her watch the screen and she get to see her kidneys and bladder. She kept saying "I have big sides!" Lol! But thankfully all the technicians were really nice and very understanding of her being nervous and scared. And that I was so thankful for - I was afraid we'd get someone who was rough and unfeeling (which I've had at that hospital before....). So even though she was scared I knew she felt a little more comfortable with them then I thought she would be. They gave her a Super Patient sticker and stuffed kitty cat at the end! I was allowed to be with her during the U/S and while they cathed her but during the actual x-rays they only allowed one of us to stay with her and she chose Beej which was Ok with me because I was pretty upset by then anyway and needed a break. But they looked at the x-rays while they filled her bladder with dye and then had her pee it back out and she does indeed have urine reflux or Vesicoureteral Reflux. The Dr. said that the urine was refluxing all the way back up into the kidneys and he is 100% certain that is what has caused her kidney infections. They have given us a treatment plan yet. There are two forms of treatment - medication until the child grows out of the problem or surgery depending on how bad it is. We don't know exactly the extent of it yet because we'll have to talk to her Pedi. Dr. So at least now we know what the problem is and we can work towards getting it fixed. I'm glad that's over for today. I'm sad she has it although I did suspect she did once someone I know told me about it and I did a little research on it. I don't know what the future holds with it all - we are going to certainly start making her drink even more water and cranberry juice to hopefully keep the kidneys flushed out and free of bacteria. Thanks for all the prayers and encouragement and thoughts everyone sent Gianna's way today! I'm very proud of her! She is such a sweetheart!

What is vesicoureteral reflux?

When urine from the bladder flows back up into the kidneys, this is called vesicoureteral reflux. Urine normally goes only one way. When urine flows back up from the bladder to the kidneys, germs can get into the kidneys. This can lead to infection in the urinary tract. If reflux isn't noticed, the repeated infections can lead to scarring and disease of the kidneys. Reflux happens in about one-third of children who have urinary tract infections (UTIs).