We took John to the cardiologist today - no surgery for now. The hole has started closing a little bit. We have to take him back in 4 months to see what progress he's made by then. They will then determine if they need to do further testing (heart catheterization) to see exactly what the blood pressure is in both sides of the heart and whether it would require surgery.
The Doctor said there is a 90% chance that John will have to have heart surgery, but that he's doing well enough that they can defer it until later (anywhere from 1 to 3 years old). The Dr. also wants to wait and see if John will fall into that 10% chance that the hole will close far enough on its own without surgery. At any rate, if he has to have the surgery, it's a much more routine and safe surgery with an older child than it would be with an infant.
The Dr. still recommended against taking John to church or around a lot of people who would want to handle him. I also still have to keep him away from toddlers because they frequently carry so many germs and viruses. One good thing though, is that I don't have to worry so much about keeping him from crying. The Dr. feels his lungs are handling the extra pressure just fine so crying isn't going to hurt him.
That's a big relief for mom. =)
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