Lucas Camilo

We understand that lots of people have been checking Lucas’s blog the past few days and hoping to see news of a successful extubation… and so we apologize for keeping you in suspense.  The truth is, we’re in suspense ourselves, nervous about what is to come and therefore consenting to minor procedures that lead to delays, but which will help give Lucas the best possible chance at breathing on his own when the time comes.

Today he continues with his CPAP trials, breathing for two hours with assisted breaths from the vent, followed by two hours of initiating his own breaths (aka the ET CPAP) with some additional air pressure through the tube.  He’s doing fine so far, and starting tonight they’ll let him go for a day on ET CPAP mode before likely pulling the breathing tube tomorrow.

Among the things delaying him are a blood transfusion – since his platelets were a bit low – and continued monitoring of the pressure in his brain due to excess fluid.  After an ultrasound yesterday, the doctors seem confident that the pressure is subsiding and that his hydrocephalus is at least stabilizing, if not decreasing.  This is good news.

As he waits for the big extubation, Lucas is preparing for another big event: the NICU fashion show.  He’ll be competing in the ambiguous gender category, and is an early favorite by most accounts.