Wada Test has begun!

As mentioned in a previous post, the Wada Test is a procedure that is important to complete prior to brain surgery.  The purpose of the procedure is to test both hemispheres of the brain for memory and language function.  The test requires a catheter to be placed in an artery in her groin and fed up to the artery that sends blood to the brain.  They will then will put one hemisphere of her brain to sleep and test the function of the other.  Then they will repeat this process.  The procedure takes about 1.5 hours to complete, followed by 4-5 hours of stillness to allow the artery to heal and seal properly. 

Needless to say, we were all really nervous for today.  We started out our morning at 5:30 and confronted our first obstacle, Denver traffic.  The next obstacle was getting an IV started.  After 5 attempts (twice in her left arm, once in her right arm, once in her right hand, and lastly in her left hand), she finally had her IV in.  Lots of tears followed by a horrible seizure.  While she was getting her IV started, the EEG technician was getting her leads glued to her head.  Luckily, he could see on the EEG monitor the start of the seizure and end of it.  She was very confused afterwards and attempted several times to yank out her IV.  After a bit of time, she was calm and aware. The staff at Children's were amazing.

 

Waiting on the docs!



Dr. Boada (left), Gretchen, and EEG technician.

Getting hooked up!

Erica was wheeled down to the procedure room at 9:30 and I was able to stay in the room for a bit.  Her team of doctors and nurses were preparing.  There were a few familiar faces.  Lauren is a nurse and designated as her support person throughout the procedure.  Her neuropsychologist, Dr. Boada, was there and would be communicating with her throughout the entire process.  Additionally, Dr Park, her neurologist, was there as well.  Lots of other nurses, technicians, and doctors.  It was the first time I've been in a surgical room.  The amount of machines and computers amazed me, intimidated me, peaked my curiosity, and in the end,  comforted me.  How lucky we are to be in a state of the art facility with some of the best doctors in the nation. 

Because of Erica's seizure prior to the procedure, Dr. Boada informed us that we had to wait until Erica's recovery was complete.  This created a challenge because her recovery time varies from seizure to seizure.  He sat with Erica and me for a bit and asked her lots of questions to see her response time and ability to answer without struggle and confusion.  She responded very well, plus got all the math questions correct!  It took her longest to spell "world" backwards.  We chatted for about 10 minutes longer about the events of the last few days and what we have planned for this weekend.  We decided that she was back to the good ole Erica.  I gave her a hug and kiss and reminded her of how much I love her.  Through tears, she smiled and said "love you too". 

I'm out in the waiting room while she is having the procedure and test right now.  First injection to put right side of brain was at 10:15.  Second injection to put left side of brain is at 10:45.  I expect to see her in recovery in less than hour.