In My Shoes: Things Are Falling Into Place

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Things Are Falling Into Place

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I know it's been awhile since I've posted, but there's been a lot going on lately between doctors appointments and tests that need to be done. I'm happy to say though that it seems like things are finally falling into place now that I will be getting SSI and last night I got great news from my pulmonologist that transplant center will be shooting for heptopulmonary syndrome. If UNOS agrees then it will put me at the top of the list. I also talked to my liver doctor today and he said that if I get the exemption points and I do get on the top of the list then I will most likely be getting my transplant this year. I don't want to get my hope up too high right now cause I know that it will be hard for them to prove the heptopulmonary syndrome but I am glad that for once someone else is listening and is on our side. So I really have my fingers crossed and maybe my time will come soon. I do have to say though my pulmonologist sounded really excited last night so that makes me really happy.
-Fiona

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Biliary Atresia

Biliary atresia is a condition in which the ducts that carry bile from the liver to the gallbladder and small intestine are not normal. These ducts can be injured, blocked, or missing. When the ducts that carry bile out of the liver are closed, bile backs up and damages liver tissue. In time the liver can develop scarring or cirrhosis. The gallbladder may also be abnormal or missing. The cause of Biliary Atresia is unknown. It occurs in one infant in every 15,000 live births. It is a serious disease which requires immediate surgical and medical treatment.

Arteriovenous Malformations AVMS

I have been diagnosed with AVMS in my lungs do to my liver disease. These have caused me to have 2 lung bleeds which were very scary. I still have more AVMS and they are causing me breathing problems. Below is an explanation of what the AVMs are and a picture of what is happening in my lungs.

Arteries and veins are part of the human cardiovascular system. Normally, the arteries in the vascular system carry oxygen-rich blood at a relatively high pressure. Structurally, arteries divide and sub-divide repeatedly, eventually forming a sponge-like capillary bed. Blood moves through the capillaries, giving up oxygen and taking up waste products from the surrounding cells. Capillaries successively join together, one upon the other, to form the veins that carry blood away at a relatively low pressure. The heart acts to pump blood from the low pressure veins to the high pressure arteries.
If the capillary bed is thought of as a sponge, then an AVM is the rough equivalent of jamming a tangle of flexible soda straws from artery to vein through that sponge. On arteriogram films AVM formation often resemble a tangle of spaghetti noodles. This tangle of blood vessels forms a relatively direct connection between high pressure arteries and low pressure veins.
The result is a collection of blood vessels with abnormal connections and no capillaries. This collection, often called a nidus, can be extremely fragile and prone to bleeding.