Very scarey

[LizT]

A very VERY scarey thing happened to my PALS this past weekend. Aparently his exhalation tube on his vent came off- and no one that was there noticed it. It didnt cause the alarm to go off. The girl that was there helping him noticed that he was turning blue and yelled for his mom.

He passed out for a short time. His mom eventually figured out what the issue was and connected the tube again. He came to right away, but felt like he wasnt getting enough oxygen. By this time they had called me and I suggested putting him on actual O2 instead of O2 from the concentrator. I got over there as quick as I could and asked a battery of questions, making sure he was cohearant (sp?). He was. After about an hour or so he said he felt back to normal. He had a slight headache, but was ok.

Of course I offered to get him to the ER. But he declined. I also offered to call a Dr or respiratory therapist, just for peace of mind, but he declined that too.

What do you guys think? From my GUESS- because it was the exhalation tube- this means he was having a CO2 buildup, right? And this is why he turned blue (lips and hands) and why he had a slight headache? And once he was on a higher concentration of O2 he felt better? If anyone has any insight- please share.

This really scared the shit out of me. Just reminded me how fragile he really is and that even tho the disease cannot progress any farther than it has, he is still at risk of dying to do machine complications or anything else. I didnt leave his side for 7 hours. Just held him and hugged him and kissed him. I did pretty well at staying calm (on the outside), but when I left- I sobbed like a baby.

 

[tmasters]

This is terrible! I'm sorry I don't know anything about that type of ventilator so I can't answer your questions. But I have to say he was blessed to have you nearby. You did so well to stay with him I'm sure you were both scared.

I hope there is a way to trigger an alarm if this ever happens again.

-Tom

 

[LizT]

Tom- with his type of vent (which is really old) the alarm didnt sound because there has to be a big enough leak in the system to trigger the alarm to go off. this particular tube is very small, and aparently so small that the alarm wont sound. its really complete bs. it should alarm no matter what, especially if its a life threatening thing. machines piss me off.

 

[Ms. Pie]

Wow Liz! Thank God he's okay and thank God he has you!

 

[susanf]

Oh no Liz, there has to be a better way to alert. an you call an RT and ask? How is he feeling today?
Give him a hug from us.
Susan

 

[island]

You are amazing cargiver,he is very lucky to have you.:lol:

 

[LizT]

Thank you, Island.

 

[Beach Bum]

Liz,not a good thing,thank God everything worked out.--------------Hugs Ken

 

[LizT]

i sure do wish Joel was here so he could enlighten me... Im curious if what I thought happened, really happened- the CO2 buildup and all.

 

[Sequoia]

O Liz this is awful......I just read what happened. I would look into something that has a better alarm system. Thank God they noticed and took care of it in time. My heart breaks for you. Tell Ray I am praying for him....an xtra guardian angel (that's you!)

 

[LizT]

Thanks so much Sharon. It was a horrible experience. I dont know if it was a good or bad thing that I wasnt there right when it happened. I for sure wouldnt want to see that- i would never get past that. But I also think it wouldnt have happened if I were there. I wouldve caught on sooner. Who knows. Im just glad he is ok and back to normal.

As for something with a better alarm system- his vent is pretty much obsolite (sp?) so it should be being replaced soon. I just dont know how much better the new one will be. I was talking to his pulmonologist once and asked him why certain tubes can come off and the alarm wont sound. (oxygen and the exhalation tube) He said that there isnt a big enough "Leak" in the system to cause the alarm to sound when they disconnect. He said if the system was that sensitive to tiny leaks like that, then it would go off all of the time because there is always air escaping from the trach site. Pretty crappy if you ask me.