Josiah's upcoming surgery

I know I haven't blogged in forever but this seemed liked a good place to put this information for our friends and family who are interested.

First, most of you know that Josiah has had almost constant ear infections since Halloween. Last Friday we went to the pediatrician with yet another ear infection and she said it is time for tubes. We saw the ENT on Tuesday and scheduled the tubes for February 8th. It is considered a surgical procedure that he will have to be put under for but it should only take about 15 minutes. After a little while in recovery he will get to come home.

Later on Tuesday, I was changing Josiah's diaper and thought that his scrotum looked a little swollen. I decided to watch it and a couple hours later I decided that it was for sure swollen. I called the doctor and  when the nurse called back she said that I needed to take him in for sure right away. This was at 7:40pm. Praise God that my parents had been in town because Thomas was out of town for work! My dad stayed with Nate and Adah while my mom went with me and Josiah to the hospital. 

At the ER they ordered an ultrasound which showed a 5cm x 5cm loculated hydrocele. This is basically a collection of fluid. From my experience as an ultrasound tech, I did not think that all of it looked brand new. Obviously some of it was because that is how I noticed the swelling, but I really think that some of it had been there for a little bit. The ER doctor said that is could have just been caused by the virus that he had (with this week's ear infection) but he wanted us to follow up with a urologist this week.

I feel very blessed that Thomas knows so many doctors through work because he knew exactly who he wanted to go to. We just had that appointment today. It turns out that he has a inguinal hernia which requires surgical repair. I happened to mention that he is about to get tubes and the doctor said that he can coordinate with the ENT and they can do it at the same time. HUGE PRAISE! So, if the date works out for both of them Josiah wll have surgery for tubes and the hernia repair on February 8th at 7:30am. 

Please pray that it will all go well, he will do okay with the anesthesia, and that he will be okay eating his breakfast a little later than usual. Also pray for us to not worry and to trust God with our little man. Thank you for your prayers in advance.

Here is some information on what he has if you are interested:

Inguinal Hernia
As a male fetus grows and matures during pregnancy, the testicles develop in the abdomen and then move down into the scrotum through an area called the inguinal canal.

Shortly after the baby is born, the inguinal canal closes, preventing the testicles from moving back into the abdomen. If this area does not close off completely, a loop of intestine can move into the inguinal canal through the weakened area of the lower abdominal wall, causing a hernia. Josiah does not has intestine in his hernia at this point which is great, it is only fluid.

Inguinal hernias occur in about one to three percent of all children and more often in premature infants.

An operation is necessary to treat an inguinal hernia. It will be surgically repaired fairly soon after it is discovered, since the intestine can become stuck in the inguinal canal. When this happens, the blood supply to the intestine can be cut off, and the intestine can become damaged. Inguinal hernia surgery is usually performed before this damage can occur. During a hernia operation, your child will be placed under anesthesia. A small incision is made in the area of the hernia. The loop of intestine is placed back into the abdominal cavity. The muscles are then stitched together. Sometimes, a piece of meshed material is used to help strengthen the area where the muscles are repaired.

A hernia operation is usually a fairly simple procedure. Children who have an inguinal hernia surgically repaired can often go home the same day they have the operation.