Cincinnati III

Back to Cincinnati for the third time, hoping to hear some positive news.

On the way down we called Aultman to get our Amniocentesis results and they came back perfect...tears of joy. If I'm not crying for one reason, it's another these days. That was the best news we received since this rollercoaster began-we know we have two healthy babies.


After arriving in Cincinnati, it would've been best to have heard that our amnio reduction worked, but that wasn't the case. The echo cardiogram confirmed that our recipient baby (Baby B) is now showing heart complications. Although the complications are mild, they were not there on Monday.


Dr. Cromblehombe went over the details of the laser surgery which was our next option. This surgery is performed by using a scope and laser to disconnect all the vein to vein, artery to vein, artery to artery transmissions between the babies. There are some concerns with the surgery; however, not doing it causes even greater concerns. The surgery does not guarantee that the TTTS will reverse or that both babies can be saved. This all depends on the babies once they can see them and the placenta with the scope. Some of the statistics and concerns:

• There is a 92% chance that one or both babies will survive. A 65% chance that both babies will survive. And an 8% chance that neither of the babies will survive
• The placental share plays a large role. If our donor baby, Baby A, has less than a 20% share of the placenta the baby will not survive 24 hours after the surgery.
• The fate of the babies is not dependent on each other after the surgery is complete. They will be separate and if something happens to one of the babies it will not affect the other.
• Survival rate without treatment is less than 10%, if there is a survivor that baby will usually have an abnormality or birth defect.

We believe the best thing we can do for both of our babies is to go through with the surgery. We will be back in Cincinnati on Monday for pre-operation procedures. The surgery will be performed on Tuesday and we can come home on Wednesday after an ultrasound to see how the babies responded. We will have to return to Cincinnati again on Friday for one last appointment. The rest of our pregnancy will be followed by the MFM's at Aultman.

It's a concern how quickly TTTS progresses, and we feel so fortunate that all of our doctor's were on top of this situation. I cannot imagine if we would've waited any longer to go to Aultman, then to Cincinnati.

We pray that God will give the surgeons the wisdom needed to save our babies and that they will come through this surgery with great results. We are concerned about how small Baby A is and pray that the placenta will support both babies after the surgery.

Thank you so much for your continued prayers. The cards we have received have been so inspirational and supportive. We can't tell you how much this means to us.

"Life is a series of thousands of tiny miracles."- Mike Greenberg