So here is the scoop....
Allison DOES HAVE an inferior vena cava. For whatever reason, at some point in her life she developed several large clots. Her IVC is completely blocked with old clots that have shrunk and pulled the vein small from the kidneys down to the iliac veins where it breaks off to the legs. She has a complete blockage of the right renal (kidney vein) but the kidney is functional with several small collateral vessels. She also has a narrowing of about 4 inches of the IVC behind the liver.
The plan is this....
A venogram at 5:30 in the morning. This is a special dye/x-ray test that will take about an hour. It will show exactly what is blocked and how much, etc. They place 2 IVs in the feet and possibly one in the jugular to inject the dye. The x-ray machine is like an arteriogram in an OR.
IF at the end of the venogram they draw blood and her INR (blood thickness) is between 2 and 2.4 then they will then (on the same table in the same room) do an interventional procedure to open with wires, balloons, etc. and place SEVERAL stents in the veins at multiple points. They will open everything up and stretch the veins open and leave stents in place. He said this will give Allison very good resolution of her problems.
IF her INR is still too high (yesterday it was 3.3) then they will conclude the venogram and do the procedure on Friday morning. Dr. Bjarnson is off but he said he will come in to do it. He said don't count our chickens before they hatch and that he is generally pessimistic. There is a 10% chance they cannot fix her. They may be able to help one place and not another. We will just have to see. This procedure would be at least another 3 hours.
Should everything go well then she could leave the next day with us remaining in town a few days and maybe going home at the first of the week. She will leave the hospital on low molecular weight heparin in the form of Louvenox shots daily and taking the drug Plavix.
She will have extensive back pain for 3 - 6 weeks following the procedure. We will have to fly back up here in 3 months for follow-up testing and evaluation.
Should this be successful he see's no problem with her having children in the future. That would only require the heparin shots daily.
I KNOW there is more I wrote down and will want to share but I'll do it later. We are waiting to see a hematologist now. We will have to get another hematologist there in Birmingham.
Please continue to pray for us and I love you all...
Jennifer
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