Thank You!!

Dear family and friends,

As you know Emma has been ill for the past month now and we haven’t known exactly why until this past weekend. This weekend at P.C. Hospital Emma was diagnosed with Kawasaki’s Disease. She had many of the symptoms: red eyes, dry finger tips, swollen fingers and hands, enlarged lymph node, constant fevers. She had been walking around (when she could walk) like an old lady with terrible arthritis. Some mornings she couldn’t even get out of bed on her own because the pains in her swollen knees were too great. Getting up and down was also a chore for her little body. It took it all out of her. Emma was pasty and constantly tired.

What is Kawasaki’s Disease you ask? Good question. It is a disease that typically occurs under the age of 5 in Asians or mainly boys, not as frequent in girls- but obviously it does happen. Kawasaki’s Disease is believed to be generated by an adverse reaction to a virus, but it is really not known how or why. Kawasaki’s involves all Emma’s symptoms plus it involves the heart, which is the main concern. Doctors say they need to diagnose Kawasaki’s within the first 10 days to be able to prevent serious heart damage, such as aneurysms, blood clotting and potentially a heart attack leading to death. Emma was diagnosed after 3 weeks of symptoms thus there was a major concern for her heart.

In the hospital Emma had an echo cardiogram, EKG, and lots of blood tests. We saw a rheumatologist, cardiologist, ophthalmologist, infectious disease specialist and a host of other good doctors. The EKG came back good and the Echo came back showing dilated arteries. The good news, which was a surprise to the doctors, was that she did not have any aneurisms! She was treated with an IV of gamma globulin and high doses of aspirin. By the time we left the hospital, Emma’s CRP count (that shows inflammation) had dropped in half. It was still higher than normal, but on its way down and no more fevering. The good thing is that it is highly unlikely for the disease to re-occur and she is on the road to recovery.

We will have continual follow ups with the cardiologist (2 weeks, 8 weeks, 6 mo. and then yearly) for the rest of her life along with small doses of aspirin. We are also following up with the cold laser therapy with Dr. Shiflet (the doctor who did the body scan and found a large amount of a bacteria called Kingella Kingae which caused some of Emma’s symptoms). Today she is in high spirits and running around. She’s as fun as ever, as Bill would say “Sassy’s back” and we are extremely happy for that.

We are very fortunate that Emma’s heart was in such good condition after 3+ weeks of symptoms. We know that it is by the hand of God and the many prayers, fasting, and blessings that Emma was finally diagnosed and is now getting better. We want to thank each of you who have kept Emma in your thoughts and prayers these past few weeks. We are truly grateful for all the support we’ve been given through our family and friends! We love you!!!

Love,

Angela and Bill