An Ear Update

I have lots to update, but let me start with the biggest thing going on right now. Hollister's EARS!!!

It's always about Hollister's ears!

I can't recall what updates I have shared.

The MRI he had in December showed that the cholesteatoma's had returned in both ears.
Our doctor asked us to seek a second opinion. We did and we didn't care for the second doctor we met.

We tried a third. This time in San Antonio. We are much more comfortable with this doctor.

Hollister was scheduled for surgery during Spring Break, but when we went in, he had a fever and low oxygen, so the surgery was cancelled.

The surgery was then rescheduled for March 25th.

This was the boys before we headed out Monday afternoon. I picked them both up early from school. They are eating their lunch and watching TV while we pack the car.

We went Monday night and stayed through Wednesday. We have found a pretty nice hotel that is close to the doctor's office and the surgery center. The boys really love staying in hotels.

The boys Pappa Benny was able to come from New Mexico for this surgery. I think it made the boys feel like we were on vacation.

We reported at 11am. This is when it is really nice to have those electronic devices. It helps the time pass along faster.

Surgery was scheduled for 1pm. The doctor's first surgery ran late, so ours was late too.

 Pre Op

 The doctor marked a happy face on his right ear to make sure they operated on the correct ear. 

 Hanging out waiting for the doctor and the anesthesiologist to show up. 

 Todd was able to go back with him, but only with the cap on. 

 The surgery started about 2:20ish or so. This was Hamilton's first time to attend a surgery. For the most part, he did well. He slept on the floor for a while, he played and he ran around like a crazy 4 year old. Thankfully, we were the only ones in the waiting room for the majority of the time. He had total reign of the facility and he knew it.

It was the longest surgery to date. It lasted close to five hours, maybe longer. We didn't even see the doctor until after 7pm.

His report was good. The cholesteatoma was on the mastoid like expected and the facial nerve. It had not made its way to the inner ear, which was a major concern.

The doctor removed the prosthetic he had from a previous surgery and did replace it with a new one. Originally, he did not think he would put a new one, but decided it was needed. He also did what is called a canal wall down. This pretty much cleans the ear of everything. (that is the non medical description).
A canal wall down needed to be done on this ear because it is his only hearing ear and this procedure is less likely to effect the inner ear. He has already had a canal wall down on the left ear, which is not a hearing ear anyway. Typically, a canal wall down procedure means that a cholesteatoma is less likely to return, but as we already know, this is not always the case.

This is a pretty aggressive surgery. We are at that point though. This was Hollister's sixth surgery; third on this right ear.

In recovery

Hamilton was more than thrilled to help out after the surgery. At four, he is actually pretty good at driving a wheel chair. 

In the hotel room afterward. At first, getting him to eat or drink was tough. But, eventually he woke up, drank and ate everything in sight. He had a good first night and like most times, very little pain. 

The next morning
I know he doesn't look happy or comfortable, but he was actually in pretty good spirits. 

This bandage is much bigger than his previous surgeries. This came off after 24 hours. 

Currently, the outlook is that Hollister is hearing. He will continue to use his external Baha. If he hears with it, then we know he has hearing. If he doesn't, then we know the hearing is diminishing.
The doctor told us, that he will not need another surgery on this ear. (no guarantees of course) He told us every six months he will have to have his ear cleaned and every year he will have  to be monitored to see if the cholesteatoma has returned. He will have to do this for the rest of his life.

Removing the bandages is always traumatic. You would think they would invent tape that came off without ripping skin.
Inside Hollister's ear are "plugs". They will remain in there until at least Monday when we see the doctor. These are helping with the enlargement of his ear canal. We put ear drops over them three times a day.

 It is then covered with this ear cover called a glasscock. He will wear this for a week. He keeps it on at all times. It will help with swelling and keeping everything safe from germs.

We will take him Monday for a post op check. They will do a hearing test at that time as well.

We will also begin planning the next steps for treatment on his left ear. We know he has an infection in that ear and the cholesteatoma has returned. This is a non hearing ear though, so the urgency is a little different. The infection is of concern, but we are monitoring that pretty closely as well.

This is Hollister today. He had class pictures at school  and didn't want to miss them. The kids were really thrilled to see him. He is quite the trooper.

That's what we know so far! I will keep you posted!