The Results Are In

Porter Boy has mild obstructive sleep apnea. :( I'm wishing I would have pushed for this study sooner. The 2 most upsetting things for me to read in the report were:

1. "REM sleep is very low- normal, particularly at this age should be 25-30%." Porter's getting 12.7% (Did you know REM sleep has been proven to help in cognitive development? Not saying it's the only factor, but I was just reading a research study about it yesterday. Not to mention REM helps your child be in a better mood. In my mind REM is IMPORTANT!)
2. "As the result of 50 obstructive breathing events" This means Porter is on the index at 7.6- less than 1.5 is considered normal and that index rate increases to 14.4 when Porter hits REM sleep. (No wonder he wakes up for no obvious reason at all! No wonder sleep has been a challenge, he's working super hard to breath and the more relaxed he gets the more likely it is his airways will close off! It makes me sad to think about it.)

What does this mean? We're not sure. The ENT was very opposed to a Adenotonsillectomy before the study because, "It's hard on children this age." I believe him. Like I said, Porter is a mild case the ENT deals with much more sever cases all the time. However, since the study results he wants to re-evaluate. The Pulmonologist is recommending a Adenotonsillectomy along with the explanation that children with DS don't always response as well as they'd like to this procedure. Porter will need another sleep study and probably supplemental oxygen even with the surgery. SIGH. Guess it's better to know now than later but I think Porter probably should have been on supplemental oxygen since birth and hasn't been. That's a little hard for me to think about. So there you have it. We're meeting with Pulmo next week and hopefully the ENT as well so we can decide what the next step is.

Sorry I can't get any new photos off of our card at the moment so I grab a few of my favorite pictures of Porter Fresh from God. They're a nice reminder of just how quickly a new born captures your heart and what we have to look forward to in a few weeks. (P brand new and looking like my Daddy)

{See Grandpa was taken with Porter at first cuddle. Grandpa Gregg is SO excited to have a girl! He has done more for Priya's closet than anyone else. Every time I see him he smiles at me and says, "Look!" to some new darling pink outfit.}

{Pictures like this remind me of the tiny details that make having children phenomenal.}