Brain MRI Results

Small Lesions, but No Prediction of Outcomes

We met with a neurologist yesterday afternoon to review the results of Evie's MRI.  The results showed some small, dark lesions scattered throughout her brain (probably calcifications.)  He could not say what this might mean for Evie's long term development, but he described how he will follow up with Evie over the next few months to check for any neurological issues. So far we have not seen any signs of seizures or abnormal muscle tension (cerebral palsy), and Evie moves all her limbs normally.  All encouraging bits of information!

The neurologist also took a look at Evie to check her reflexes, measure her head, and take a peek at her eyes.  He said things looked pretty normal for her being at about 36 weeks gestational age.  Evie's head is in the 20th percentile, which is not concerning, but he'll watch to see if it continues along a normal growth curve.   When Evie comes off the ventilator, they can check her hearing as well.  We can start working with a NICU occupational therapist at that point too so we can support her brain function as much as possible.

At first I looked forward to this neurology meeting with lots of apprehension because we thought we'd get a better idea of the long term outcomes for Evie. . . Now Kabir and I realize that even a brain scan cannot predict for us at all whether she'll be severely affected or mostly okay- It will be up to Evie to show us month by month!  The neurologist explained that he has see children grow perfectly normally with this same level of damage and kids grow up with major issues as well.  Right now we are still feeling hopeful about Evie and her long-term outcomes. . .

Goals for Evie's Body

Evie's body still has a ways to go for healing: We want to see her liver and spleen shrink back down to normal size, which could take some time.  If Evie's liver swelling goes down more, she can probably come off the ventilator in a couple of weeks (or maybe more, we'll see.)  Right now she has too much trouble expanding her lungs due to that liver.  We also want her spleen to stop trapping platelets- Evie still requires platelets every other day!

Kabir and I thought Evie might be ready to come home by her due date, May 18.  Now we realize that it might be quite a bit longer than that. . . It's hard to readjust our expectations, or get rid of expectations all together.  We'll just have to focus on the day-to-day healing.

Thanks again for all the love and support on this strange journey!