Evan Glarum
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Evan was born at 32 weeks gestation on January 30, 2000 (Superbowl Sunday!) and weighed 4 lbs., 7oz. He was intubated due to respiratory distress syndrome. He also quickly developed a pneumothorax requiring the placement of a chest tube. Evan responded well to surfactant therapy and was extubated after a few days. He spent the remainder of his stay in the hospital trying to get the hang of eating by mouth and breathing at the same time. He eventually figured it out and came home on February 29, 2000.
Evan did very well for the next several months at home. When he was almost eight months, he developed what seemed to be the croup. He had pretty severe stridor, and his chest was retracting very deeply. We took him to the emergency room, where they treated him with steroids and sent him home. Almost immediately upon arriving home, his breathing became even more labored. We headed back to the hospital, and he was admitted. A week later, the croup had not cleared up. The doctors then decided to scope his throat. The scope revealed that he has subglottic stenosis as a result of being intubated. The trach was placed on October 5, 2000.
Evan has done remarkably well with the trach. He pulled on it once, had a coughing fit and hasn't touched it since. He is an extremely happy baby (except for when we change his trach ties!).
Update June 2002 - Evan was decannulated on June 11, 2002. He is doing very well.
