For the past three weeks, Field has been getting Procrit injections to help boost his red blood cell production. Dr. Fearon has done several studies and highly recommends that his patients take Procrit prior to surgery in order to increase their overall blood volume and decrease the chances that they will need a blood transfusion after surgery. Blood loss is one of the riskiest factors of cranio surgeries, so we wanted to do everything we could to ensure Field's body was producing more blood. Before each Procrit injection, the nurse has had to check his hemoglobin level to make sure it is below 15 (we want it to be as close to 15 as possible by next week, but if above 15, the Procrit would pose a greater risk of him developing a blood clot or other serious side effects).
Last week his hemoglobin level was 11. When we went in yesterday for his final Procrit injection, the nurse pricked his finger and his hemoglobin level read 10.5. My heart sank. All I could think of was that the Procrit was not working and we had been doing all of these extra pricks and shots for no reason. I know there are so many sick babies and children who go through much, much worse, but it is so hard for me to watch my baby's sweet little fingers and legs get pricked and poked, knowing that he has no idea what is going on. The nurse didn't think that 10.5 sounded right, so she pricked another finger and was able to draw out a little more blood that time and when she ran it through the machine again, his hemoglobin read 13.4. Praise the Lord! It had gone up 2 full points from last week. My little man is one tough cookie! He actually didn't even flinch when she pricked his finger.. but the Procrit injection? That's a different story!!!
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