Pneumonia

Well I suppose it was inevitable but it was still hard to hear from the doctors that Scott now has pneumonia.  It is the result of the respirator remaining in his lungs for so long and an infection has developed.  Doctors wanted to remove the respirator sooner, but felt that he wasn't quite ready for it.

The doctors will treat the pneumonia separately from the injury and the brain trauma, though both treatments will happen simultaneously.  He was started on antibiotics for the pneumonia this afternoon and doctors believe it will take a week or so for the infection to clear up.  He requires a little closer monitoring now because they need to ensure that his blood oxygen levels and his blood pressure are high enough during the pneumonia for his brain to get what it needs.  So, they have the respirator turned back on and he is once again relying on the machines to breath for him.

The nurses are also monitoring his fever closely because there is some risk to his brain recovery if the fever spikes too high.

Things seemed a little shaky this am but, by this afternoon, he blood pressure, oxygen and fever were all under control.

The pneumonia feels like a set back, for sure.  But it is only temporary and once Scott beats the infection he'll be right back on track.