Level II Ultrasound @ 24 weeks

We had our Level II ultrasound yesterday. We found out Baby 'A' has approximately 21 weeks and 2 days growth. This is behind our actual 24 weeks gestation. Baby 'A' weighs approximately 15 oz. This is up from the 11 oz. he was only 3 weeks ago. This was to be expected as it is much smaller because of the TTTS. The heart rate was a little faster than usual, but the doctor's are not all that concerned. His heart rate was 150 bpm. They were able to find a trace amount of fluid around this baby equaling 0.5 cm. This is the first time in two weeks we have had a measurable amount of fluid, but is still well short of where we would like to be.

Baby 'B' is much larger. He weighs in at a robust 1 lb. 11 oz. and is 24 weeks plus 6 days growth. This is a little ahead of schedule. The heart rate is down a little to 126 bpm. The fluid around Baby 'B' has risen slightly to 11.0 cm. Those are the measurables.

The unmeasurables are that they are still growing and that is the good news. It would be really nice to see a bigger growth for Baby 'A', but at this point any growth is good. The doctors are still very concerned about the enlarged heart of Baby 'B'. We are going to be continually monitored twice a week and are hoping to make a few more weeks. They are ready to deliver at the first sign of any distress, but they do not want to take them before they have to. Next week we are having Dopplers done in Mankato (again?) on Monday. Hopefully they know what to look for this time. We have an appointment in Minneapolis on Thursday. The appointment in Minneapolis also includes meeting with the doctors at Children's to let us know our chances and how everything is going to be handled once we do deliver. At this point we are praying that things balance out a little better. This could be the turning week from everything we have read. The survival rate of infants that reach the next point increases immensely. It is still a long shot because of the complications, but we are praying that they can continue defying the odds.

Thank you everyone for the prayers and well wishes. Our family and friends mean so very much to us. Do not be afraid to contact us if you have more questions. We read everything. Please continue to pray for us and our babies. This has been a long and winding road and will continue to be, but no matter the outcome we know that we have a support system like no other. Thank you.

Love and well wishes,
Christian and Sam

24 weeks and counting

Well we made it another week. This week started out with some misinterpretation and more testing. Monday, Sam had testing done in Mankato just to check the fluid levels and heart tones of the twins per our Doctors request. This testing showed that we had a major increase in fluid levels and drop in heart rate for baby 'A'. We were not told about the fluid levels, but Sam did overhear that the heart rate was about 113 BPM. This is much lower than we have been consistently showing. After the appointment, Sam had called me to let me know the results she knew. We did not think much of it, but it only took about an hour before the Perinatal Clinic in Mpls. called to tell us they wanted us up there right away on Tuesday to verify the findings.

We had an early appointment, so we left home pretty early in the morning. Sam had packed another bag because we thought that maybe this would be the time that she was to stay at the hospital until she delivers. We met with ultrasound technician (great guy, we have had him a couple of times) and he told us what some of the findings were in Mankato. Mankato had discovered over 20 cm of fluid around baby 'B' and no fluid around baby 'A' . When he went through both babies again he found that not much has changed from the week before. He thought maybe the technicians in Mankato might not have known what to look for and measured wrong. The Abbott technician commented that we are holding pretty steady at 10 cm for B and very little around the other. The heart rates were are also holding steady. This was reassuring news for us, but also frustrating at the same time because we drove 2 hours just to find out that there was nothing to be concerned with.

He took these results to our doctor and then he met with us. The doctor is fairly happy with the progress of the twins, but is concerned because these babies are not the following any pattern that he typically sees. From what he said, the twins are really doing there own thing and as long as they are still progressing they will stay "in the oven." Although we are not following a typical TTTS schedule, he is hoping that we will continue on our own path. He told us to roughly plan on being admitted to the hospital in a few weeks for daily monitoring, but now we will continue with twice a week visits. He is concerned about the hearts of both babies, so we are also scheduled to meet with the pediatric cardiologist next week for his diagnosis. We also had a rough guess of a weight of 1 lb+ for Baby 'A' (which means he is growing!) but we did not get a size for Baby 'B'. We are having a more thorough Level II ultrasound on Thursday with accurate growth measurements, so there will be much more to comment on then.

23 Weeks

Well we made it to week 23, and completed week 2 of modified bed rest. I had the Betamethasone (steriod) shots this week, and had an ultrasound and saw the Dr. today. There were really no significant changes in either baby. Baby B's fluid level was at 10cm, but they could not find a traceable amount of fluid for baby A. They said this could be because of how he was positioned, so they don't feel that it really has gone down since last week. They are disappointed that the fluid levels have not leveled out after the surgery, but are still hopeful that our babies are strong. They are still concerned with the enlargement of the heart of Baby B (the recipient), but feel that it is because of the stress of the TTTS before the surgery. The Dr. wants me to have bi-weekly Bio-physical profiles (BPP) so they can closely monitor the babies and look for any changes. I will now have the BPP (or ultrasound with dopplers) on Mondays in Mankato, and then head to Mpls on Thursdays for the next few weeks. The Dr. said that he felt the best place for the babies is still in the womb, and even if we were at 28 weeks (with a better chance of survival) that he would still recommend they stay in the oven. This was some reassuring news I guess. We also toured the NICU at Children's Hospital today so we could have a glimpse of what our future may look like after our babies are born. Pretty scary to see such sick, small babies, but we both feel that they will be well taken care of there and that will be the best place for them once they are born.
Next Thursday they plan to check the growth of each baby, so we are hopeful that they are both growing. My belly is for sure getting bigger, so I hope that they are as well. :) My belly measured in at 45 in. this week! Wowzers! Bring it on babies!
That is really all the news I have for this week. Each week seems to be a small milestone, and we are thankful we have made it this far. Keep thinking of us, and check back next week!
Love to all,
Sam and Chris and family

At 22 weeks

Another trip to Minneapolis to check on our babies. After a long wait in the waiting room it was our turn again. We never know what we might find out, so we try to console each other while the technician takes a look at our babies. Again the dopplers for both babies look good, and both appear to be producing urine. Baby A's fluid level is .8cm, and Baby B's fluid level is 9cm. This is not good news, but I guess it is not bad news either. We saw a different perinatologist today, but he managed to answer some of our questions in a different manner, and boy did we have lots of them. We are scheduled for the Betamethasone steroid shots for next week. These will be given because our babies will more than likely be born prematurely, and they will help boost lung development. We were told that we may face some very tough decisions on whether or not to have the babies prematurely in the near future, but we are hoping that our babies can hang on until 28 weeks and we will go from there. We keep praying.
Thanks to all of you who have called to check in on us, and who have sent prayers and well wishes our way. It is great to know that we have a wonderful support team out there cheering for us along this difficult road.

Week 21 Appointment

Our next appointment was not the best of visits. We again had an ultrasound scan with doppler readings and growth measurements, and at this visit the fluid levels were not as stable as they were after surgery. Baby A's fluid level was at .9cm ( a drastic drop) and Baby B's fluid level was around 8cm. Also baby A was weighing in at 11oz and measuring 19 weeks, and baby B was weighing in at 17oz and measuring 21 weeks. This was not the good news we had been hoping and praying for. While both babies' dopplers still looked good, and both were producing urine, the very low fluid level for Baby A, was now a reason for great concern. The doctor felt confident that he had fused all the conjoining blood vessels and that each baby was receiving nourishment on their own from mom, but now feels that we were posed with an uneven placental share, leaving baby A with a very little share of the placenta resulting in the low fluid levels. Sam was put on bedrest with hopes to help stabilize the fluid levels. We were scheduled to be back to the clinic in another week. That was a very rough afternoon for the both of us. We continued to pray for our little baby boys.