Hope these can help. These sites have some nice links to related issues for ease of use. Especially with an iphone.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001612/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004124/
You are doing a great job
So it’s been a rough few months for him. That’s a shame, poor guy. 
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Finally, Jaceson forgot to mention yesterday that when they were getting him prepped for his tests, that they’d decided to have him do a bone marrow biopsy today. I’ve heard those things hurt tremendously, so if y’all don’t mind sending one more set of good vibes / prayers this way, I sure would appreciate it if you could ask for it not to hurt as bad. Thank y’all much again.
[/QUOTE]
My warmest, best thoughts his way.
Okay, that cracked me right the hell up. Best to you and your husband, faithfool. Hope the coming days will eventually be better than these right now.
The best news yet! He’s been allowed to come home!! And they decided to put the bone marrow biopsy off until he sees the liver specialist. So we made it through. YAY! He’s feeling fine now, just a little tired and sore. We can handle that. 
Jaceson wants to thank each of you for being my rock. All the help and love has been balm for our fear and wearriness. You guys are awesome. I can’t thank you enough.
PS. I promise I’ll get to those new links soon. I just have to rest a bit first.
Hooray! Home is so much better - I really believe I always recovered more quickly once they sent me home.
So glad to hear they’ve let him come home! Yay!! You probably feel a lot better about it too, having him there where you can keep an eye on him. I know that when my hubby is sick (though he’s not been this seriously ill), I want to be taking care of him. Yes, I know that the medical professionals are better equipped for it, but dammit, I want to be in control of his care! 
He’ll also be tons more comfy at home, I bet!
Yes!
'nuff said.
-D/a
Hooray! I’ll bet both of you will be able to relax much more easily now.
Continued healing vibes headed in your direction.
Haciendo la ola - doing the wave.
It looks prettier with more letters, you know 
Great news, Kemi!
With regard to bone marrow biopsies, they are not always painful. Find out what they plan on using to numb the pain and to sedate him. (the numbing is a given, the sedation, maybe not).
Wishing you continued good news.
mmm
Twenty-three years ago, when my mother had a spinal tap done, they used neither sedation nor numbing. When she asked the doctor about this, saying she had heard it was a very painful procedure, the doctor had said they don’t medicate because the pain just isn’t that bad. So my mother said “Have you ever had one?” and the doc said he had not; mom said “Then how do you know it’s not that painful?” His response? “Because if it were that painful, we’d medicate for it!” :smack:
Some years later, when our oldest daughter needed a bone marrow biopsy, I was quite relieved to find that times had changed. They used conscious sedation for her.
Good news, indeed! Glad to hear you are both home and resting comfortably.
Thanks for the information on the bone marrow biopsy. We’re still waiting for Jaceson to see the liver specialist. The closest appointment they had was 3 weeks away, so we jumped on it. Other than that, he went back to work yesterday and his blood pressure has been good. No more dizziness or as much swelling. And unfortunately, that’s all I have to report.
Thank you again for all the well wishes. I’ve printed out this thread to remind me of just how wonderful you folks are and how much support we’ve got. I just can’t say thanks enough.
That’s not unfortunate! That’s wonderful!!
Look at what you just wrote! After all that fear and the scary test results of the last week - you’re saying that everything is holding steady, and he is well enough to work.
That’s like the utter opposite of unfortunate.
Sure, maybe it’ll take a while for a solid diagnosis and to really feel like you know what’s going on, but he’s doing well now - it’s totally ok to be happy and celebrate that!
Lasciel, what I meant was that I’m sorry I just don’t have any more information to share, not that it’s unfortunate what we’ve learned so far. Sorry for the confusion.
On a side note, thank you xoferew for the sweet card. It truly was a high point for Jaceson and he wants me to let my Doper friends know how much he appreciated y’all taking care of me during our time of need. You all are terrific… the hubby says so.
As to what’s going on now? He’s still losing weight and the swelling has almost gone completely. He’s done okay going back to work, just a little tiredness. Other than that, I’ll update everyone as soon as we go to the liver specialist, which is now just a bit over 2 weeks away. And that’s all for now folks. Thank you again. I couldn’t have made it without you.
I’ve been away from the internet for nearly two weeks, and I’m so glad to check back in and see that things are looking more positive for you and your husband. I’m sure your loving support is making all the difference in the world for him right now. I’ll keep praying for you two and wishing you well!
Any news?
Sorry for no news yet. We’re waiting for the doctor’s appointment on the 14th and then hopefully I’ll have lots to update you all on. Thanks for asking.
It sounds similar to what I’ve been going through for 2 1/2 years now.
Hang in there, faithfool. If alcohol is not involved, they call it NASH (Non-Alcohoilc Steato-Hepatitis.) Your hubby will be put on a restricted diet, and have regular meds to take to fight the symptoms. If ascites gets too bad they may do a paracentesis, which is a draining of the excess body fluid.
Watch out for confusion and fatigue as well.
IANAD, just a well-informed patient. Ask me anything you want, you have my email.
Well, we went to the specialist today. The good news is that the doctor was surprised that Jaceson is still working full-time and that his M.E.L.D. (Model for End-Stage Liver Disease) Score is so low. All very positive signs.
The bad news is that his liver is failing and he will be needing a transplant definitely in the sometime future, undoubtedly sooner rather than later. Not only is his liver cirrhotic, but it’s also hepatic too.
On top of that, the specialist is worried about him occasionally having confusing states. He says that’s Hepatic Encephalopathy. Which is “a brain dysfunction caused by the accumulation of toxic chemicals in the blood stream. The normal liver acts as a filter removing harmful substances from the blood. With cirrhosis the liver is not able to remove a variety of toxic chemicals. These chemicals remain in the blood and eventually enter the brain, causing a variety of disturbances with brain function. The toxin most easily identified is ammonia. Treatments for this will include antibiotics and proteins restriction.”
So he sent Jaceson to get 9 more lab work-ups and he’s put him on a low sodium diet. He also confirmed that he wants him to get the bone marrow biopsy after all. And that’s about all we can do right now. I guess at least until we see him again a month from now.
I just don’t know what to think. I was so believing that they’d misdiagnosed him in the hospital and we’d get to this appointment and they’d tell him he didn’t need a transplant at all. Stupid wishful thinking. Now I’ve been blindsided and I’m completely in shock. I just can’t lose him and I know how serious this is. What do you suggest? What should I do now? I’m drowning in fear here.