Kate - Osteomyelitis

Well, it's been so long since I've been on to blog that blogger has made changes.  The page to publish posts looks different and the way to add pictures......  I have another thing to get use to!!!!

Anyway, it's been a while since I posted to say the least:)  This past winter was very rainy in Shanghai.  I don't think we saw the sun for 2 months.  It wasn't very pretty and not much to blog about.

The end of February came around and we had some "excitement".  Kate came down with a fever but everyone was having fevers around us.  Just figured she had a virus because she didn't have any other symptoms.  2 days after she started the fever, she fell and started complaining that her arm hurt.  So I took her to the ER and the X-ray didn't show anything.  We thought it was just a bad sprain.  Went back to the hospital 2 days later with her in terrible pain and still fever.  Xray showed nothing but no one could even get close to her arm without her screaming.  Blood tests were abnormal but could reflect a virus.  We were sent home but scheduled to go back the next day for more blood work and follow up.  She felt much better the next day but still had fever and swelling in arm.  She was sitting at the table working on homework and I was seriously considering canceling the appointment because she seemed so much better.    

 I looked down at her arm and noticed the red spot.  I took a picture with my phone and we headed back to the hospital.

 They did a MRI and showed she had osteomyelitis in her arm.  Crazy!!  We weren't expecting that one.  I don't know what it is but Kate likes to test out the health systems in the country we are living:)  She was admitted to the hospital and they immediately began the IV antibiotics.  The good thing is she responded very well to the antibiotic and showed great improvements within 2 days.  The hospital, doctors and nurses were all wonderful.  In China there is no home health care so we had to stay in the hospital.  The hospital would never want to send you home with a line for fear of infection.  We still aren't sure how she got this infection.

After 10 days, she was sent home with oral antibiotics and didn't have to spend her "11" Birthday in the hospital.  That was the best present she got.  Happy Birthday Katelyn!!!