Sleep and Surgery

Karen got a good night's sleep for the first time since the surgery. Her pain level is down to a 3 out of 10, also near to the best it's been. They did an x-ray of her abdomen and noticed more air than last time. More air tends to mean the hole is getting bigger instead of smaller. Since the fluid was sterile the leak is probably higher up in the intestine, or may even be a perforation in the stomach. This could potentially be very bad; so the doctor who did the majority of the surgery last time, wants to do an exploratory surgery to look for the leak. Karen said while she is feeling better, something still feels wrong, and agreed to the procedure. This means she will need the blood transfusions after all, since she will lose more during the operation. The surgery is scheduled to start at noon, and she will be getting the transfusion as soon as possible.