Heart Month Day 7: Echo/EKG/X-ray

So, any heart parent gets pretty familiar with these tests. Every time Mira has a cardiologist appointment, she gets an echo and an EKG. Fortunately, medicine has come a long way and they work very hard not to x-ray her unless it's really necessary because they know that the very nature of her condition will expose her to more radiation long-term.

As far as echos (echocardiograms), Mira hates them. She would rather have a shot than an echo. She particularly hates the parts where they press hard--under the rib cage and up around your collarbone and neck. Having had several myself, I can't say I blame her. They are uncomfortable, you feel exposed, and then you have to wipe off all the goop. I am loathed to tell her that puberty makes them even less fun.

Patrick never seemed to mind echos. In fact, I don't remember them ever having to sedate him for them. He'd just grin at the tech as they slid the wand across his chest and occasionally try to grab the cord. He was getting attention, and he loved it.

Sleeping post-x-ray

With respect to x-rays, let me tell you a story. It's April 2011. Mira is vomiting a lot and generally not feeling well. We take her to the local hospital where they take an x-ray. She is diagnosed with "a BIG pneumonia" and given antibiotics and sent home. When she doesn't get better, we take her to the city hospital ER, where they do an x-ray, see nothing has improved, give her IV antibiotics, and send her home with stronger ones. No improvement, so we go back to the city hospital ER where Mira is admitted and where she will eventually be diagnosed with RSV. When they take additional x-rays, they notice that there is literally no change in the x-rays. Not better, not worse, images exactly the same. They figure out that the big white cloudy space on her x-ray was not pneumonia, but simply the absence of lung because the left one never grew very large, given that she has no left pulmonary artery.

And this is the story I use to remind myself that medicine is called a *practice* for a reason. They look at symptoms and play the odds. Until doctors learn that your child is plumbed differently, as the saying goes, "when they hear hoofbeats, they think horses, not zebras." Absolutely look for the best doctors and best care for your child, but remember that medicine isn't perfect. Most of the time, they are doing the best they can with the information they have.