Yesterday my poor little guy went in for his 1st (and hopefully last) surgery. He had, what is called, communicating hydrocele in his right testicle. In WebMD terms:
"A hydrocele is a painless buildup of watery fluid around one or both testicles that causes the scrotum or groin area to swell. This swelling may be unsightly and uncomfortable, but it usually is not painful and generally is not dangerous. Although hydroceles are common in newborns, they can also occur at any age in later life.
In bold is what happened with Ronin. After his right testicle dropped from his abdomen, it didn't seal off correctly or completely. Because of this, at 2 months, Ronin looked like he was very well endowed. Too well endowed. They decided to wait and see how it looked at his 4 month appointment. So at his next "Well Baby Check-up", we asked what it was and what to do. Our doctor told us that we should take him to a Urologist at Primary Children's Hospital. Here is where they told us that he had a Hydrocele build up and we were to watch it and wait until he was 1 year old. If nothing changed they would have to have surgery. If all went right, it should clear up by his 1st birthday.
Shortly after his 1st birthday, we went back into the Urologist and he said that there was still a bit too much fluid in there and he wanted to go in and repair the issue. They said the statistics are that 1 out of every 182 cases will have to have surgery. We were just lucky to be that #1. They gave me the surgery code and I was on my way to call the insurance people so I could get this scheduled.
I got all the information I needed and made the appointment for Monday, June 2nd. They told me that I would be getting a phone call on May 30th to tell me what time our appointment would be.
May 30th:
11:30 - Received call to tell me that our appointment time would be at 10:45 on June 2nd.
3:57 - Received a call stating that Ronin could not have his procedure done because the insurance information will not be updated until later in the month. This call ensued a lot of bad words as well as a lot of phone calls. Who can get a hold of a doctors office on a Friday at 4??? It took more than 8 calls back and forth to be able to get any information changed and updated. They told me that we were going to have to wait until after the 10th of the month for his surgery and that there were only so many slots open for their Riverton location. We finally decided on June 26th and they would make sure that all of the insurance items were taken care of. We would get a call the day before to let us know what time we would have to be there.
We FINALLY had a date! It felt like this took a lot of effort to get to but I was finally able to relax. That is until about 2 days before his surgery.
June 24th:
I had my doctors appointment they started to get the house picked up. This didn't really happen. We just spent a lot of time playing.
June 25th:
10:42 - Received a call from the hospital to tell us that Ronin's surgery was scheduled at 9:30. We would have to be there at 8:30 to sign in. He was to be freshly bathed either the night before or the morning of. He wasn't to eat anything after midnight and couldn't have any drinks after 6:30 that morning. We were to bring him in in baggy/ comfy clothes.
This is when panic took over. My little guy was going in for surgery!! I couldn't believe it! I instantly turned into a train wreck!.I frantically started to do all our laundry and clean his room. I knew that the surgery was a quick one but I didn't know how Ronin was going to be after. I wanted to have everything done that I could. I felt very overwhelmed by the whole thing. Needless to say, I didn't hardly sleep.
June 26th:
Up every hour and frantic about the day head of us. Ryan and I were up and fed by 8:05, woke up Ronin and we were in the car headed to the hospital at 8:15.
8:32- Arrived at Riverton Primary's and began to get checked in. Ronin got a special band that they put on his ankle and Ryan and I got wrist bands saying that we were his parents.
8:40- Checked in waiting for the nurse.While waiting, They had this awesome car that Ronin decided was pretty cool. He had a hard time leaving it at first. when the nurse Niki came to get him.
8:50- Niki took us back to the pre-op Room. Here they checked his Vitals and made sure that he was all good to go. They also had us wipe him down and put him in special robes. In the process of getting this done, Ronin decided to pee all over the exam table, the paper, the floor, the wall, anywhere that he could. We ended up having to wipe him down again and hurry with the diaper so we didn't have any more problems.
9:10- Nurse Patty came in and gave us the last details. She took us to the pre-op waiting area where we waited to talk to the doctor and the anesthesiologist. They had tons of toys and a Little Tikes car. Ronin could have been in heaven.
9:20- We arrived to the waiting room. They tell us that we are looking at going back at 9:45.
9:50- The doctor came over and gave us some final details on what was going to happen. There would be a small incision, and it shouldn't be too painful after a few days. After talking with him, we still had to wait for the anesthesiologist.
10:00- The anesthesiologist came over. He tried to make quick friends with Ronin so he wouldn't be too unhappy to go with him. He also told us about what forms of anesthesia they would be using. They would use a mask at first then once he was just out enough they would use the IV to keep him under until it was over. He walked us to the hall, and Ryan handed Ronin over. He began to cry. This made me start to tear up. I remember looking at the clock through tear filled eyes, 10:05.
10:05- We were led to the waiting room. I couldn't hardly see. Ryan ended up having to text our parents for me. It took me about 15 minutes to get myself put together. I ate a bagel and was able to function. We watched the World Cup game between the USA and Germany.
10:45- We were told that Ronin was out of surgery and the doctor wanted to tell us how it went. We went into the consultation room and waited.
10:55- The receptionist came back in to see if the doctor had come in yet. He hadn't.
11:00- The doctor finally came in and told us that everything had gone well and what we needed to do once we got home. We were then sent back to the waiting room. They wanted Ronin to wake up more before we could see him. (Inside I'm thinking: Really? I thought we were supposed to be there to comfort him once he woke up... Guess not)
11:05- We were brought back to Ronin in curtained post-op. He was screaming to the high heavens. He was not happy. He didn't want me. He wanted Ryan. but still was not happy. The nurse told us that they struggled with the IV so they pulled it out right at the end and he had to be awake to take some pain meds. They unhooked him from the monitors for a minute so Ryan could go and try to calm him down. The only thing that would work was to have him looking out the window. The nurse got us a pina colada slushy and moved us over to the post-op room. Here is where we would stay until he had 4 oz. of fluid and was able to calm down. We struggled with the main nurse here because she wouldn't let us try to clam Ronin down how we knew would work and was rude about what we were doing. Once she stepped out, we were able to start calming him down.
11:40- He finally calmed down. We were able to get him to eat some slushy and be happier. He just sat in Ryan's arms and wouldn't move.
12:20- He has had enough fluids and has calmed down. They began to discharge us.
12:30- We were in the car and headed home!
Ronin fell asleep around 1 and slept til 3:15. While he slept I was able to relax. Everything was done and over. Now it was all about keeping him happy. By 4 he was up and playing again.
The rest of the night went well. He wet to bed at 8:30 and woke up at 2 and 7. Altogether, a goodnight post surgery!
Today has been good. He is a happy, happy camper. I couldn't be happier with how he is recovering.
**This picture was of Ronin this morning making funny faces at breakfast. His face is not swollen.
"A hydrocele is a painless buildup of watery fluid around one or both testicles that causes the scrotum or groin area to swell. This swelling may be unsightly and uncomfortable, but it usually is not painful and generally is not dangerous. Although hydroceles are common in newborns, they can also occur at any age in later life.
The cause of most hydroceles is unknown.
Hydroceles in newborns may mean there is an opening between the abdomen and the scrotum. Normally such openings close before birth or shortly after.
Hydroceles that appear later in life may be caused by an injury or surgery to the scrotum or groin area. Or they can be caused by inflammation or infection of the epididymis or testicles. In rare cases, hydroceles may occur with cancer of the testicle or the left kidney. This type of hydrocele can occur at any age but is most common in men older than 40."In bold is what happened with Ronin. After his right testicle dropped from his abdomen, it didn't seal off correctly or completely. Because of this, at 2 months, Ronin looked like he was very well endowed. Too well endowed. They decided to wait and see how it looked at his 4 month appointment. So at his next "Well Baby Check-up", we asked what it was and what to do. Our doctor told us that we should take him to a Urologist at Primary Children's Hospital. Here is where they told us that he had a Hydrocele build up and we were to watch it and wait until he was 1 year old. If nothing changed they would have to have surgery. If all went right, it should clear up by his 1st birthday.
Shortly after his 1st birthday, we went back into the Urologist and he said that there was still a bit too much fluid in there and he wanted to go in and repair the issue. They said the statistics are that 1 out of every 182 cases will have to have surgery. We were just lucky to be that #1. They gave me the surgery code and I was on my way to call the insurance people so I could get this scheduled.
I got all the information I needed and made the appointment for Monday, June 2nd. They told me that I would be getting a phone call on May 30th to tell me what time our appointment would be.
May 30th:
11:30 - Received call to tell me that our appointment time would be at 10:45 on June 2nd.
3:57 - Received a call stating that Ronin could not have his procedure done because the insurance information will not be updated until later in the month. This call ensued a lot of bad words as well as a lot of phone calls. Who can get a hold of a doctors office on a Friday at 4??? It took more than 8 calls back and forth to be able to get any information changed and updated. They told me that we were going to have to wait until after the 10th of the month for his surgery and that there were only so many slots open for their Riverton location. We finally decided on June 26th and they would make sure that all of the insurance items were taken care of. We would get a call the day before to let us know what time we would have to be there.
We FINALLY had a date! It felt like this took a lot of effort to get to but I was finally able to relax. That is until about 2 days before his surgery.
June 24th:
I had my doctors appointment they started to get the house picked up. This didn't really happen. We just spent a lot of time playing.
June 25th:
10:42 - Received a call from the hospital to tell us that Ronin's surgery was scheduled at 9:30. We would have to be there at 8:30 to sign in. He was to be freshly bathed either the night before or the morning of. He wasn't to eat anything after midnight and couldn't have any drinks after 6:30 that morning. We were to bring him in in baggy/ comfy clothes.
This is when panic took over. My little guy was going in for surgery!! I couldn't believe it! I instantly turned into a train wreck!.I frantically started to do all our laundry and clean his room. I knew that the surgery was a quick one but I didn't know how Ronin was going to be after. I wanted to have everything done that I could. I felt very overwhelmed by the whole thing. Needless to say, I didn't hardly sleep.
June 26th:
Up every hour and frantic about the day head of us. Ryan and I were up and fed by 8:05, woke up Ronin and we were in the car headed to the hospital at 8:15.
8:32- Arrived at Riverton Primary's and began to get checked in. Ronin got a special band that they put on his ankle and Ryan and I got wrist bands saying that we were his parents.
8:40- Checked in waiting for the nurse.While waiting, They had this awesome car that Ronin decided was pretty cool. He had a hard time leaving it at first. when the nurse Niki came to get him.
8:50- Niki took us back to the pre-op Room. Here they checked his Vitals and made sure that he was all good to go. They also had us wipe him down and put him in special robes. In the process of getting this done, Ronin decided to pee all over the exam table, the paper, the floor, the wall, anywhere that he could. We ended up having to wipe him down again and hurry with the diaper so we didn't have any more problems.
9:10- Nurse Patty came in and gave us the last details. She took us to the pre-op waiting area where we waited to talk to the doctor and the anesthesiologist. They had tons of toys and a Little Tikes car. Ronin could have been in heaven.
9:20- We arrived to the waiting room. They tell us that we are looking at going back at 9:45.
9:50- The doctor came over and gave us some final details on what was going to happen. There would be a small incision, and it shouldn't be too painful after a few days. After talking with him, we still had to wait for the anesthesiologist.
10:00- The anesthesiologist came over. He tried to make quick friends with Ronin so he wouldn't be too unhappy to go with him. He also told us about what forms of anesthesia they would be using. They would use a mask at first then once he was just out enough they would use the IV to keep him under until it was over. He walked us to the hall, and Ryan handed Ronin over. He began to cry. This made me start to tear up. I remember looking at the clock through tear filled eyes, 10:05.
10:05- We were led to the waiting room. I couldn't hardly see. Ryan ended up having to text our parents for me. It took me about 15 minutes to get myself put together. I ate a bagel and was able to function. We watched the World Cup game between the USA and Germany.
10:45- We were told that Ronin was out of surgery and the doctor wanted to tell us how it went. We went into the consultation room and waited.
10:55- The receptionist came back in to see if the doctor had come in yet. He hadn't.
11:00- The doctor finally came in and told us that everything had gone well and what we needed to do once we got home. We were then sent back to the waiting room. They wanted Ronin to wake up more before we could see him. (Inside I'm thinking: Really? I thought we were supposed to be there to comfort him once he woke up... Guess not)
11:05- We were brought back to Ronin in curtained post-op. He was screaming to the high heavens. He was not happy. He didn't want me. He wanted Ryan. but still was not happy. The nurse told us that they struggled with the IV so they pulled it out right at the end and he had to be awake to take some pain meds. They unhooked him from the monitors for a minute so Ryan could go and try to calm him down. The only thing that would work was to have him looking out the window. The nurse got us a pina colada slushy and moved us over to the post-op room. Here is where we would stay until he had 4 oz. of fluid and was able to calm down. We struggled with the main nurse here because she wouldn't let us try to clam Ronin down how we knew would work and was rude about what we were doing. Once she stepped out, we were able to start calming him down.
11:40- He finally calmed down. We were able to get him to eat some slushy and be happier. He just sat in Ryan's arms and wouldn't move.
12:20- He has had enough fluids and has calmed down. They began to discharge us.
12:30- We were in the car and headed home!
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| Ronin's Incision |
The rest of the night went well. He wet to bed at 8:30 and woke up at 2 and 7. Altogether, a goodnight post surgery!
Today has been good. He is a happy, happy camper. I couldn't be happier with how he is recovering.
