Traction

Well, we have been E-mailing Dr. Muhonen with questions about Emma's upcoming surgery. He E-mailed us back saying that he would like to try traction. We had talked to him, and other doctors, about this procedure and while they all said you can try it but it has a very low success rate. Even at our last visit Dr. Muhonen said it's not likely to work. But in his E-mail he said if we wanted to try it we had to come in on Thur before surgery! So we made an appointment to see why he Was for it now. He simply said if it was his daughter (he has 3!) He would try it.

Well that would put her going in on her Birthday. He felt bad about that. So He is seeing if he can schedule her traction day the next week.

Traction will involve 2 pins in her head with weights stretching her cervical vertebra's She will be awake, but on valium she will be like that for 2 or 3 days. Then they will take her to get a

C-scan and see if enough pressure is removed from her brainstem. If it is they will just have to do decompression surgery and a cervical fusion. Basically if it works we won't have to do the Trans-Oral. Which he says is the hardest surgery for a neurosurgeon to do.

If we could avoid the trans-oral that would be AMaZiNG!

If it doesn't work then they will have to go in and do the trans-oral. then after that they will do the decompression and cervical fusion a day or two later.

There is also a chance we could do the traction, decompression, and the fusion. But over the next year or so it may not have been enough (mostly if the syrinxs in her spine doesn't go away.) and we might still have to go back in and do the trans-oral.

He told us to mentally prepare for the trans-oral. But it is for darn sure we are hoping and praying that the traction works!

Thank You friends and family for your prayers and support.