Finally Back to the Fistula

I had dialysis Tuesday night. The doctor had said last Thursday that he wanted to start using my fistula again (at least with one needle). So, I got to do my dialysis with the blood being drawn from my arm and put back into my chest (via the catheter). The doctor came by and he said that everything looked good. He wants to use two needles on Thursday (and no catheter!). He will have them do that for a week or two and then if everything is okay, they can schedule to have the catheter removed. I am really looking forward to having it taken out.

I used the emla cream on my arm last night to deaden the needle site. It works just like it says. The pain was very little, and I think I will probably continue to use this cream for a while. Even though I only had one needle, and it was small, I think that the cream will be much nicer than just bearing with the pain each week. I guess that since it was a small needle, my arm healed much better than it used to.

I have been having a few problems recently. There is still blood in my urine (since Sunday morning), but there is not any pain with it. The nurse at dialysis said that if it continues, then they will need to check my hemoglobin levels to make sure I am not losing too much blood. But, my polycystic kidneys can cause bleeding, so they are not too worried yet. I won’t be worried unless it lasts for a while or if it starts to cause a lot of pain.

I went and saw a doctor of gastroenterology yesterday. I am hoping that she will be able to help me with my morning nausea that I’ve been having since this summer. She took my medical history and set up a few tests. She wanted some blood work (which I was able to get at dialysis last night). She also wanted an ultrasound of my liver and gall bladder (which I got this morning while having my kidney and abdomen scanned for the transplant evaluation). She also wants me to have an endoscopy, which is where a camera takes a look at your esophagus, stomach, and upper intestines. I have that appointment scheduled for Monday. It should be a lot of fun. I get to take a little nap. I still have to find a ride home, but I’m working on that. I have a few people that I can call.

I had an appointment with my family doctor today. The GI doctor had noticed some white pus in my throat, and she wanted me to get tested for strep. The doctor ran a swab today and it was negative for strep type A. She has to send it off to the lab to be run to see if I have anything else that could be causing my problem. She prescribed me some antibiotics to take for the next 10 days, so if it is bacterial, then that should clear it up. I also asked her for the name of some genetic counselors that Jenny and I can talk to before we decide what to do about having children. I already know that I have polycystic kidney disease (which is autosomal dominant), and the cardiologist that I saw for my transplant evaluation wants me to get tested for Marfans. (I have an eye doctor appointment this afternoon, I will ask him to take a look at my eyes and see, and apparently there are some signs of Marfans that show up in the eyes).

So, that’s it for now. I should be done with my chest catheter in the next couple of weeks. I will be taking antibiotics for the next ten days to clear up my throat. And, I think I am closing in on the finish of my transplant testing. Thanks for reading.