Saturday, January 10th

I'm sorry we did not blog yesterday. We had several doctors apts and things were a little crazy!Lexi had her 1st out-patient cardiology appointment yesterday. Her supra-valvular aortic stenosis narrowing (the newest one they've found) is still mild. However, her coarctation site has some more significant narrowing again. The good news is that although her echo-cardiogram shows some moderate narrowing, Lexi still has good pulses and blood pressure in her arm and leg. At this point, they have moved her appointments up to every 2 weeks where they will do an echo-cardiogram each time and keep a very close eye on her. The cardiologist has also told us that we should not be taking Lexi out in large groups, especially this time of year. They will be putting her on shots to help her lungs remain clear during the RSV/cold season. (However, we still hope to bring her to the benefit next Saturday so all of Lexi's supporters can meet her!)The neurologist from Cleveland Clinic also called early yesterday evening to speak with us. We took Lexi to Cleveland on Wednesday for a 2-hour EMG test. For this test, they actually stuck small needles in her face, tongue and legs to check her neuro-muscular connections. The neurologist said that Lexi has severe facial nerve damage. He does not know how only her facial nerves were damaged during or after her heart surgery, but for some strange reason, her 7th cranial nerve has been severely affected. Dr. Freidman said that there are two areas where this damage can start- either in the actual nuclei of the nerve within the brainstem or shortly after the nerve leaves the brainstem. If the damage is in the brainstem itself, Lexi's condition will very likely not improve. If the damage is after the nerve leaves the brainstem, she will hopefully improve. However, the neurologist said that her nerve damage is so severe, that this will take a very long time. We will not see him again for 2 months because he wants to wait and see if there are any signs of improvement at this point. Unfortunately, the facial nerve obviously aids in Lexi's blinking, eating and speech. While this is very difficult to hear, we are at least glad that we are finally getting some answers as to what Lexi's current condition is and what this means for her future.
Prayer Requests:

Pray for Lexi's aortic narrowing. Pray that it does not get worse and that we can avoid another surgery for some time. We are asking for many prayers for Lexi's facial nerve. Although the neurologist has said that it will take a very long time, if ever, to heal, we know that God can heal her quickly! Pray that this is the case so Lexi does not face even more challenges in her development.
Pray for traveling for me, Lexi and other family members as we run to multiple appointments every week in Findlay, Lima, Cleveland and Columbus.