October 24, 2006

Samantha's MRI was done as scheduled on Friday morning. She layed still through almost 3 hours of films like a trooper.
During the days prior to the MRI she had some minor headaches, increased tiredness and some dizziness. On saturday morning she was complaining of nausea. After calling the neuro surgeon in Orlando we were soon on the road. She ended up being admitted (once again) to Arnold Palmer due to increased pressure in her brain from fluid build up. They tried to tap her shunt to relieve the pressure but were unsuccessful. She underwent surgery on Saturday afternoon. She seemed to be feeling better Saturday evening as they drained some fluid while they were doing the procedure. On Sunday morning (still in the hospital) when we tried to wake her she was unresponsive. After being rushed to cat scan, which revealed the catheter was positioned wrong and was not letting any fluid drain, it was back in the OR for Samantha. She underwent her second surgery in less than 24 hours. This time they used a shorter catheter when revising her shunt and it relieved the pressure that was building up in and around her brain. Needless to say it was a very emotional/stressful weekend for all of us. She gave us a good scare.
Thankfully we are back home and she is on the road to recovery. We started her back on her treatment this afternoon which we were hoping to be able to do. Hopefully we will see some changes in her energy and abilities now that her shunt is working again.
We have not gotten an official report from Houston with her MRI results yet but expect to have it on Friday. We will be sure to update as soon as we can.
On a happy note Samantha lost her first tooth this evening, which she has been desperately waiting for. It put a great big smile on her face.
Please keep the prayers alive.
With love,
Audra, Kurt, Christopher, Samantha, and Jason