Successful Surgery

At 3:50pm, Dr. Overman (the surgeon) came by and told us that surgery went well. The large tubes that had connected Peter's heart with the ECMO machine have been removed from his chest. They also suctioned out 30cc of clear fluid in his lungs and Dr. Overman was actually able to close the wound. Before the operation, they had not been sure whether they would be able to do that. It depended on swelling and fluid in the chest cavity. It's very good that Peter doesn't have to have another surgical procedure just to close his chest. Peter is doing well and Dr. Overman said his heart looked good. Peter's heart rate is slightly elevated (about 180bpm) and his blood pressure is a little "soft" (low) around 55/45, but that is not unusual after an operation. This is very good news. (By time of posting, Peter's blood pressure was up to about 63/50 and his heart rate was about 170bpm.)