11.28.10 Part II

She did have to have the blood transfusion. Every time they have to do something that requires "parental consent", I get pretty anxious. They said they will know within the first 15 minutes if her body won't handle it, and we are about an hour or more into it, so she seems to be doing well. The doctor said that she has actually made it farther than most preemies do without needing a transfusion. With all the blood tests they have to do on preemies, their little bodies can't quite keep up, so it's very rare for a preemie to leave the NICU without having to have at least one transfusion.
The nurse noticed her left knee looked swollen this morning, so they have done some X-rays. This afternoon the nurse said it looks better, so the doctor wonders if she just slept on it funny. We will know more when the X-ray's come back though. Unfortunately, because of the swelling, they want to keep her leg pretty straight, so they have a little foam board taped on it. So, she has a board taped on one leg and the IV for the blood transfusion on the other leg. Because of this, she has to lay on her back, which she does NOT like one bit. Plus, preemies breathe better when they are on their tummies, so she's having to work a little harder to breathe. Ick!