prayers that is, for Matthew Wise and his family. They continue to need your heartfelt prayers. Here’s an update tonight from his dad (btw, Matt was moved from a hospital in Virginia … about an hour from home .. to a hospital in Baltimore … adding an additional 90 minutes from home):

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Update from Mike. Fri 11/4 (20th day in the hospital), 9:15PM. Matthew continues his roller coaster ride. We’re delighted to be able to communicate with him again, but he obviously doesn’t like the fact that he is sick. He has tendency to get agitated (rapid heart rate, higher blood pressure and rapid breathing), resulting in the nurses once again turning up the sedation. One reason they kept him in a coma previously was to give his lungs a rest, but he could never sustain it. It seemed as though each day something new happened to cause him to become unstable. Now that we are at UMMC, we’re seeing the same pattern of cycling. After his inital arrival, the doctors reduced the sedation and began moving him towards drugs that would allow him to sleep normally, without being in a coma. His O2 saturation was moving up, and they were able to reduce pressure and oxygen on the vent. Unfortunately, they also found that he picked up a virus while in the hospital – not the usual, ordinary type of virus, but a highly resistant type that requires a more powerful drug (can’t remember the name). It seems as though every time we make progress, there’s a setback. His O2 saturation level also continued to drop throughout the day. Eventually he was right back at square one, with the need for 100% oxygen on the vent — and no rest. The doctors performed yet another surgery, this time to move the VV ECMO insertion point from his groin to his neck, to allow oxygenated blood to travel directly to his heart. This has helped his O2 saturation, but he cannot sustain this configuration for long without progress. They also put him back on nitric oxide supplemental ventilation, which has the effect of dialating blood vessels around his lungs and increasing the flow of oxygen delivered by the blood. The result was O2 saturation is all the way up to 95% this evening. He’s in better condition and more stable than he’s been in many days. However we know the nitric oxide is only short term, the body adapts and the effect diminishes within the first 24 hours of use. What we need tonight are prayers for stability, so that Matthew can break the cycle and get on the road to recovery. St. Gerard Majella, Pray for Us!

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Please continue your prayers for Matthew and his family … this has been such a roller coaster ride! But, God is always Good and all will turn out the best. But do pray for patience and understanding and healing for one and all.