June 2nd 2025 - Surgery
In support of
Liam Slattery
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Liam Slattery
From December - June there were a LOT of doctors appointments. We were searching for second and third opinions from different hospital systems from multiple specialists, including ENT, Pulmonologists, and Neurologists. Getting appointments with each of these specialties is not easy, especially for a 'new patient.' Every phone call mom had to explain the dire situation and Liam's complex medical history - this wasn't just a 15 minute evaluation to be a new patient. This was a thorough review of his history and seeking a surgical team to find other airway options for Liam - NOT trach and vent.
Liam needed help to breathe - it was obvious to anyone who saw Liam. He didn't put on any weight from December - May, not a single ounce - BUT he didn't lose any weight either. His little body was working so hard to breathe, he was burning all of his energy to simply breath.
After months of appointments and opinions and waiting for the precise time for another sleep study (at DMC), things seemed to be falling into place. Mom struggled over these six months immensely, all she wanted was to get Liam the surgery he needed to breathe. He breathed on his own before he got sick, she knew he could do it again. It was difficult to trust in God things would fall into place at the right time with the right surgical team... but guess what, everything did.
Liam had a second sleep study on May 19th. He was able to remain on room oxygen throughout the entire study and hold acceptable oxygen saturations. The sleep study showed Liam having central and obstructive apneic events, around 40 per hour - that's ALOT! An event is defined as pausing of breathe for 2 cycles of breathing. Mom and dad were hoping the sleep study would clearly indicate accurate CO2 levels and give some confidence of going under anesthesia in surgery. Unfortunately, they could not collect accurate CO2 data because of how bad Liam's obstructions in his airway were. After reviewing the sleep study with multiple doctors from various specialties, Mom and Dad chose to proceed with the surgery and selected Liam's surgical team.
The riskiest part of the surgery for Liam was not the surgery itself - it was coming out of anesthesia and if Liam would be able to breathe on his own again post operation.
On June 2, Liam was scheduled for surgery. Before the operation Mom and Dad had an extensive discussion with the anesthesiologist to come up with a plan that would give Liam the best chance to be extubated and to breath on his own post op. There was so much fear, anxiety, and worry as Mom and Dad sat in the waiting room during the procedure. We elected to do the procedure to help our son breathe but the risk was if he could not recover he would need to have a tracheostomy. All those feelings were met with tears of happiness, joy and a weight lifted off of our shoulders when the surgeon came out and informed us that everything went great during surgery and that Liam was awake and "feisty." Liam even tried pulling his intubation tube out himself. They were able to extubate Liam first attempt, hallelujah! We could have not prayed for a better outcome for our son.
We chose the right team in God, the surgeon, and the anesthesiologist.
Liam needed help to breathe - it was obvious to anyone who saw Liam. He didn't put on any weight from December - May, not a single ounce - BUT he didn't lose any weight either. His little body was working so hard to breathe, he was burning all of his energy to simply breath.
After months of appointments and opinions and waiting for the precise time for another sleep study (at DMC), things seemed to be falling into place. Mom struggled over these six months immensely, all she wanted was to get Liam the surgery he needed to breathe. He breathed on his own before he got sick, she knew he could do it again. It was difficult to trust in God things would fall into place at the right time with the right surgical team... but guess what, everything did.
Liam had a second sleep study on May 19th. He was able to remain on room oxygen throughout the entire study and hold acceptable oxygen saturations. The sleep study showed Liam having central and obstructive apneic events, around 40 per hour - that's ALOT! An event is defined as pausing of breathe for 2 cycles of breathing. Mom and dad were hoping the sleep study would clearly indicate accurate CO2 levels and give some confidence of going under anesthesia in surgery. Unfortunately, they could not collect accurate CO2 data because of how bad Liam's obstructions in his airway were. After reviewing the sleep study with multiple doctors from various specialties, Mom and Dad chose to proceed with the surgery and selected Liam's surgical team.
The riskiest part of the surgery for Liam was not the surgery itself - it was coming out of anesthesia and if Liam would be able to breathe on his own again post operation.
On June 2, Liam was scheduled for surgery. Before the operation Mom and Dad had an extensive discussion with the anesthesiologist to come up with a plan that would give Liam the best chance to be extubated and to breath on his own post op. There was so much fear, anxiety, and worry as Mom and Dad sat in the waiting room during the procedure. We elected to do the procedure to help our son breathe but the risk was if he could not recover he would need to have a tracheostomy. All those feelings were met with tears of happiness, joy and a weight lifted off of our shoulders when the surgeon came out and informed us that everything went great during surgery and that Liam was awake and "feisty." Liam even tried pulling his intubation tube out himself. They were able to extubate Liam first attempt, hallelujah! We could have not prayed for a better outcome for our son.
We chose the right team in God, the surgeon, and the anesthesiologist.
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