GI Appointment

As expected the GI doctor was not happy with Justin's lack of weight gain so he has to undergo a series of procedures which I don't 100% understand the reasons why since Carl took J to this appointment. But J had to have blood drawn, which I guess is pretty standard, he's scheduled for an abdominal ultrasound on March 9th, and he has to have an EGD (Esophagogastroduodenoscopy).

I'm not sure what they're looking for in the ultrasound but the Dr. is concerned about the shape of J's stomach. Now I've never noticed anything unusual about his stomach and Dr. Hirsch has never mentioned anything either, but an ultrasound is pretty painless so I'm not too worried about it. But I got emotional when reading the pamphlet they provided on the EGD.

• An EGD allows us to find the cause of problems such as belly pain, throwing up, bleeding, slow weight gain, or trouble swallowing. EGD's are done in the operating room. Your child will sleep through the procedure. A small rubber tube will be placed in your child's mouth. The tube will then be passed down the throat through the stomach, and into the small bowel. Small pinches of tissue will be taken during the test. You should plan on being at the hospital for 4 - 5 hours total.

Just hearing that he'll have to be put under for this procedure sent me back to our NICU days. Obviously I want what's best for J but part of me wonders if all these procedures are really necessary. I know he hasn't experienced his catch up growth, but he is growing, just slowly. So at what point do they just attribute his small size to genetics. And I know things could be a lot worse, but I just wish things were more normal for him. At any rate, I am going to ask Dr. Hirsch about these procedures at his next appointment and get her take on them.