Hudson's Urology appointment

Hudson had his annual ultrasound and appointment with his pediatric urologist today and everything went great. I was really nervous (and even had my mom come with me) because Hudson screams everytime we make him lay still long enough to change his diaper so I thought he would flip out when we forced him to lay on the exam table long enough for an ultrasound. He completely proved me wrong and was perfectly still the entire time. His eyes looked a little fearful so I think he was just too scared to move.


Here is the lobby of the newly remodeled Childrens Hospital. It is pretty incredible with kid-friendly toys, murals, chairs, etc. I think about how many families are there with their babies for days on end and love that it at least provides a cheerful, comfortable environment for them.



Hudson, looking out the window, and waiting to get his ultrasound. He loved looking at all the trucks go by.



Brave boy getting his ultrasound. He gripped my finger and looked back and forth between me and the tech the entire time. It took about 10 minutes so I was so proud of him!

Waiting for Dr. Frimberger to go over his results with us.

So the great news! Hudson's left kidney has completely dissolved (it was already extremely small last January). This is a wonderful thing because if it were to swell rather than shrink then surgery would have to be done to remove the non-functioning kidney. It also decreases his chances of high blood pressure because it removes the negative feedback loop. Basically, our kidneys help regulate blood pressure so if you have a kidney that is not working the body can assume it is because it is not getting enough blood. Therefore, the brain tells the heart to increase the blood to the kidneys (which won't help the bad kidney anyway) and the blood pressure will rise. So it is better to have no kidney than a small, poor kidney. The Doctor then told us Hudson's right kidney has responded better than he ever sees. It is actually the size of a 10 yr old's kidney which is a wonderful thing! It is functioning at 100% and he has as much kidney function as any other person. The Doctor told us to make sure and realize that Hudson has NO restrictions. Sure, the most likely cause of a kidney injury is ATV accidents and he would try to restrict those but he also said that even if Hudson had two great kidneys he would restrict ATVs. They also make vests that he can wear if he puts himself in a position that kidney injury is more likely (football, bicycles, etc.). However, he even says these aren't really necessary. So basically, we were thrilled with the appointment. We were once told Hudson would have to come every year and have now been told that because he progressed so quickly, we don't have to come back for 3 years! Guess we already have an over-achiever!