Benjamin Update (Sunday)

Because the information about little Ben is changing so frequently, we are going to try to keep a running update here on the blog so everyone can be updated as frequently. I (Tina) am getting this information 3rd hand from trained a medical expert (my mother) who gets rather technical. I will try to be as accurate as I can.

For those of you wondering what has happened, I'll start from the beginning.

On Friday, October 19th David and Nannette and their two boys, Alex (age 3) and Benjamin (age 8 months) were rear ended at a stop light and pushed into the intersection causing a multiple car pile up.

David suffered a severe concussion and apparently Nannette and Alex only suffered lots of scrapes and bruises. The baby, Benjamin, was injured critically. He suffered bleeding on his brain and is in pediatric ICU.

The bleeding on the brain was stopped initially, but Benjamin has been sedated and is breathing with a ventilator. There have been a few MRI's and CT scans to check for more bleeding and other injuries.

There was a MRI done on Saturday that has not been read by the radiologist as of the writing of this post. If the MRI reads no more damage, they are hoping to wean Ben off of the ventilator because he seems to be breathing more on his own. He is responding to pain (which is a good thing).

The update as of Sunday, October 21 is that it appears there have been some slight setbacks. They have noticed that one of Ben's pupils is strained so they are ordering another CT scan and an EEG. Apparently, in my non-expert understanding, they are looking for clots or more bleeding that could be causing the strain.

They also tried to take out the ventilator tube to the lungs but his throat is swollen. I don't know if this is cause for concern, but they are leaving the ventilator on until more questions are answered.

Also, little Alex is continuing to vomit. They are taking him back into the ER to see if there is any concern for this.

Continue to pray for renewed strength for Dave and Nannette. This is wearing on them physically and emotionally. They need extraordinary wisdom to deal with the insurance and any other details concerning care for Alex.

Leave a comment for Dave and Nannette and let them know of your support and prayers.