Wada test is complete

At 11:25, Dr. Boada, Dr. Park, Dr. Gretchen, and three nurses greeted me in the waiting area.  They said things went very well and she is doing great.  They are removing the EEG leads and preparing her for recovery. 

The Wada Test gave doctors a lot of great information.  When Erica's left hemisphere was put to sleep (which was presumed to be her dominant side), they were surprised with how strong her right hippocampus was.  The hippocampus is responsible for memory, and often times one lobe of the hippocampus does the majority of the work.  It turns out that if Erica's left hippocampus was not functioning or needed to be removed, her right hippocampus would be able to keep up and compensate.  This was great news.  When they put the left hemisphere to sleep, they quickly found that Erica is most definitely left hemisphere dominant and that her language center exists there. More great news was that language has not been impacted by tumor and seizures. Unfortunately, the left hippocampus was not keeping up with memory like the right side was.   Since she is left dominant, then the hippocampus has most likely experienced decrement due to the seizures and/or tumor.  The tumor may in fact be releasing toxins to the brain tissue and hippocampus.  So removing the tumor may in fact allow them to heal and perhaps we'll see an improvement in memory.

All in all, I think we got good news.  Doctors said that the results couldn't have been better and they were pleased with what they learned.  They were also impressed with how well Erica handled such an "odd" test.  She experienced a very unique procedure, was awake and responsive through it all, and can walk away with a fascinating story to tell.  Plus, they even printed some cool pics of the procedure for her to share with those that can stomach it. 

When I first saw Erica getting rolled into her recovery room, she looked exhausted.  It didn't take long for me to figure out that the anesthesia that they used to put both hemispheres of her brain to sleep made her really loopy.  She was talking loudly, making funny faces, giggling, squeezing my cheeks, smacking at my dangly earnings, and sharing everything that came to her mind (without any filter).  She was really irritated with the sand bags laying over the leg that the catheter was in.  It forced her to keep it still, which was hard because she was so wiggly at first.  I fed her lunch since she had to remain laying down.  Good thing for bendy straws that can deliver chocolate milkshakes to a person in a horizontal position!  Let's just say it was an interesting few hours before she finally fell asleep. 


When I asked for a smile, this is what I got!



Getting sleepier...

Finally asleep. 

Now that she's resting quietly, we have several more hours to wait out before we allowed to leave.  Once we head home, she will need to remain lying still till the morning.  We've decided to keep her home tomorrow and let her rest.  Doctors have said she'll need to take it easy, which might be difficult as she hobbles around on crutches.  So staying home might be the best bet.  I think she'll also be incredibly exhausted emotionally. 

So at this time, her upcoming appointments/procedures are:
- Fri, Oct 4 - Recheck on her sprained ankle
- Tues, Oct 8 - Visual Field Test consultation with her eye doctor
- Tues, Oct 22 - Pre-operation appointment and lab work
- Wed, Oct 23 - Surgery to remove brain tumor (laser surgery still a go!)

Thanks to everyone for your emails, calls, texts, and positive thoughts being sent our way!