Cardiology visit

HORRIBLE

Owen is in heart failure, his lungs are wet and he needs medication right away, he also needs surgery right away. The cardiologist asked us "did you know he had DS before he was born" I shook my head no, then he asked "what would you have done !!!!!!!!!!!!!?????" WTF!

We couldn't believe that he asked that, the gall of the man.

an email sent at the time to a friend:
Owen has one major hole and 3 other things wrong (complete AVSD) with his heart all which require surgery at Westmead.
The next step is a pre surgery appointment in Sydney, the cardiologist made is sound like the appointment should be sooner than later but gave no indication of a timeframe, I guess it depends on the priority of other cardiac patients in the state. We are shocked that things are so bad, we knew there was a problem of course, but his heart had sounded fine under the stethoscope until last Thursday when it suddenly became very noisy (the pediatricians words) and he also had developed fluid on his lungs making it hard work for him breathing. It is all so sudden when he had been doing so well.
He is on medication - a diuretic to reduce his blood volume to ease the pressure on his heart and lungs. He seems to being going just okay - he has had a cold on top of everything else.
Col and I have been very upset but have pulled together again and we are ready for the next step (daunting as it is). At every moment we just try to put as much love and (for my part) breastmilk into him as we can and we think, I mean we are pretty sure that he smiled at us - he has done it twice now (on different days) such gentle, peaceful little smiles - it melts our hearts !