In addition to biting my fingernails all day waiting to hear from DCFS, yesterday was also the day of Landon's appointment with a plastic surgeon for the bump on his eyebrow (and my first day of winter classes, but I'll get to that later). I had asked about the bump several times while we were stuck in the hospital in October, but no doctor ever gave us an answer- if it wasn't related to child abuse, they weren't particularly interested. Our pediatrician was also unsure of what it was and got us this appointment. Within 10 seconds of seeing Landon, the incredibly kind and qualified plastic surgeon (you should see his resume) diagnosed it as a dermoid cyst. Which is: "a congenital defect that occurs during embryonic development when the skin layers do not properly grow together. A dermoid cyst is lined with epithelium, which contains tissues and cells normally present in skin layers, including hair follicles, sebaceous (skin oil), and sweat glands." Apparently it will grow infinitely larger until it is removed in entirety- we've already noticed substantial growth in the past 5 months.
I will call Monday to schedule the appointment, but he should have it out in a fairly quick surgery under general anaesthesia in about a month. Usually the patient can go home soon after the surgery, but because of his past respiratory problems and tracheomalacia, the doctor wants to keep Landon overnight in the hospital. If the surgery is early in the morning and twelve hours go by with no hiccups, there's a chance we could go home the same day, which would be great. Normally I wouldn't mind staying, but this will be the same hospital we spent 9 days in while under investigation and I'd really prefer to not sleep there again. So hopefully this will be one medical issue that is as simple and straightforward for Landon as it is for everyone else!
Your Afternoon Horrendous Backdrop: Gladiator II
3 hours ago
This poor boy! And poor you!
ReplyDeleteHe's such a strong little guy, I'm sure he'll be fine. But when is the world going to finish dumping its shit on you??
(As an aside, the word verification for this comment was Intell. I wonder if they are paying advertising costs for it.)
Poor little guy can't catch a break. I'm glad it is nothing serious though. At least you have a good doctor. I hope after this things will start going better for you guys.
ReplyDeletePoor baby. :( Hope the procedure is quick with minimal pain.
ReplyDeleteAw Landon! I hope you don't have to stay there overnight as well. This poor little guy sure has been through the ringer, hasn't he? Big hugs to you all.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter had a dermoid on her left eyebrow removed at 8 months. We used a plastic surgeon, and it turned out well. An hour after the surgery under a general anesthesia she was crusing on the furniture, and playing.
ReplyDeleteShe's 4 now, and there's absolutely no trace of anything except for a very faint line abovew her brow. Having a plastic surgeon do the surgery was so smart since it was on her face.
I've been there, and hope it goes well for you!
Poor little guy! Hate that you have to go back to that hospital.
ReplyDeletePoor Landon! I hope he has a easy procedure and an easy recovery!
ReplyDeletePoor thing :( He really better win the lottery some day!! Still praying for you :)
ReplyDeleteOh, this happened to my son! Only, his was under his eyebrow, right next to his eye, and had gone through the eye opening. Because of its location, it was:
ReplyDelete1.) Eroding the bone of his skull.
2.) Threatening his nasal cavity.
3.) Threatening his eyesight.
4.) Less than a millimeter from infiltrating his brain.
The surgery itself, performed at eight months, apparently went well, but my son had a very bad reaction to some of the medication they gave him to bring him out of the anesthesia, and it was after the surgery that he started having serious eating issues. I still don't know whether the eating issues were a coincidence or somehow related to the surgery or his reaction to the medicine.
Now, FYI, the ENT surgeon we saw regarding this situation actually said to us that if the cyst had NOT been in such a dangerous location, he would have recommended that we wait until our son was at least a year old to perform the surgery, because infants under one year are much more susceptible to complications related to anesthesia. He said he felt that plastic surgeons were often too quick to recommend instant removal of dermoid cysts for aesthetic reasons, but that in his mind it was better to err on the safe side concerning the health of the child. Just thought you may want to hear that opinion, given all the issues poor Landon has had so far.
Email me at stateofdiscontent AT gmail DOT com if you are interested in discussing.
keeping our fingers crossed that surgery is quick and successful...at least it's not anything really serious. I mean, surgery for a little guy has got to be terrifying, but I'm glad it's not a cancerous tumor or something awful like that.
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