Prayers needed...and ANSWERED!

Okay..... Here's an update, finally.

Floss and I have been here at the hospital most of the time since I arrived (3 hours late...TYVM, United Airlines) Saturday night. This is the first time I've spent more than 5 minutes online since then.

Matt continues to show some slow improvement day-to-day.

Floss says she is hoping he will come out of the coma in a week or so.

He has been responding to pinches on the arm by trying to move his arm away from the pain. He has responded to Floss talking to him by moving his eyes inside the closed eyelids, and by moving his head somewhat toward her voice.

His cranial pressure has dropped so much that the doctors are talking of removing the drainage tube today. (It never exceeded 20, which was said to be crucial, and is now around 5 or 6.) MRI's/catscans say there has been no brain stem (not "spinal cord", as I earlier mistakenly called it) damage. He has had his sedative discontinued this morning, to see if he might respond positively to that. He was taken out of bed and sat in a chair this morning, too.

I guess that's about all for now.

Thanks once again, everyone!!!!!!!!!!1

Bob
 
Bob,

That's wonderful news. Prayers continue to go up for a speedy and complete recovery for Matt. The power of prayer is an AWESOME thing. All the best to you, Floss, and the rest of the family.
 
I just got a call from Bob to update me on Matt. Bob can not go into the ICU because he has a cold but he said awhile ago Floss came running out and said that Matt opened his eyes. We are not sure at this time if he did it on purpose or it was just a reflex, but look at it as a good sign. Thank you all for your continued prayers.
 
I just got a call from Bob to update me on Matt. Bob can not go into the ICU because he has a cold but he said awhile ago Floss came running out and said that Matt opened his eyes. We are not sure at this time if he did it on purpose or it was just a reflex, but look at it as a good sign. Thank you all for your continued prayers.
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That is great news! We hope and pray for further improvement.
 
I am really glad to hear of the continued improvements Matt is making. I will certainly add him to my prayers and hope to continue hearing these reports of good progress. Here's wishing him a full recovery.
 
I just got a call from Bob to update me on Matt. Bob can not go into the ICU because he has a cold but he said awhile ago Floss came running out and said that Matt opened his eyes. We are not sure at this time if he did it on purpose or it was just a reflex, but look at it as a good sign. Thank you all for your continued prayers.
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In my experience, this is an excellent sign---in the late 70s a fellow bandmate received a serious blow to the head and was in a coma in a Birmingham hospital for several weeks. But he began to show the exact same symptoms as Matt is reported to exhibit here. Happy to say this excellent pianist recovered completely, and while he has no recollection of what happened or caused his trauma, he was able to rebuild his skills and mind in fairly short order to the point that he is still working out of Nashville, thirty years later.

May this (or better) be Matt's blessing...
 
I realy hope he makes it through this and I know the lord is watching over him. Good to hear he opened his eyes that is a good sign. Still Praying for matt and his family.
 
I guess it's about time for an update.

Matt developed an infection in his bloodstream a few days ago, and his blood pressure went up to about 150/90, his heart rate to about 130, and had a fever of about 102. The nurse put a cooling blanket on him Sunday, and that controlled his fever. As of yesterday morning, his BP and heart rate went down a bit, and I had a plane ticket for returning home yesterday, so I did.

As of this morning, though, his vitals were back to where they were Sunday. He needs to shake this infection.

Bob
 
Sam Sagnella...just wanted to let you know that your login info is saved on one of the maproom computers. I just posted a reply to this thread thinking I was logged in as me, but it came up under your name.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that I am praying for Matt's recovery. God does work miracles through prayer!!!
 
I guess I should have posted a couple days ago, but I was so busy cyberchasing, plus busy with other stuff.....

Anyway,

Matt did apparently beat the infection. His heart rate and BP have come down, and his fever is gone. Other than that, though, there hasn't been much improvement.

I will do my best to keep you all informed.

Bob
 
I'm just catching up on this thread as I've been busy at work. I am very sorry to hear about this. Brain injuries take a maximum of up to a year to know what recovery is expected in full. Take as an example the guy who survived the mine explosion and has fair use of his brain and body despite 40+ hours of toxic carbon monoxide inhalation. So in that light, he still has time for maximal recovery ahead.

That said, another very important prognostic sign is what his respiratory function is (in other words, does he still require a ventilator even if it's just at night?). Respiratory drive is probably one of the single biggest predictors of recovery in general. Needing to remain on a ventilator will continue to put him at risk for recurrent respiratory infections and those could prove life threatening.

I am at your family's disposal to chat (with the knowledge that a lot of my answers will be tempered by not having actually seen him medically). But sometimes it helps just to know what some of the weird medical things we doctors do or why such-and-such a response is good or sometimes neutral. My phone is 904-343-4325.

You're all in my thoughts and prayers.

Warmly,

Jason
 
I just read about this today. God bless all that are connected with this situation, our prayers and thoughts are with you.
 
Thanks once again and always to everyone for your thoughts and prayers.

Matt continues to show slow improvement! The latest is that he has been moving his eyes to watch people walk around his room. He has also been scratching itches, etc.

Bob
 
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