Angiogram and the final results

So on Thursday, July 15th we were scheduled for an angiogram which is a test where they puncture the femoral(groin) artery and are able to insert a very small camera and advance the camera to look at blood vessels and blood flow..it is very similar to a heart cath however with Braden they were looking at his abdominal aorta and his only kidney's blood flow and new connections. The procedure was scheduled at 0830 in the morning and Braden had to be NPO(nothing by mouth) after midnight..so needless to say when Braden woke up in the morning his first statement was " I am SOOO hungry" To Ian and I this was music to our ears because it was the first day where Braden seemed to be hungry and wanted food since his surgery day. So as 0830 approached we continued to prep Braden for the procedure and reinterate to him that they just needed to take pictures. Braden did require anesthesia for the procedure due to the importance of remaining incredibly still. 0900 came and went and then finally at 0930 we were taken to the angiography suite and Braden was given medication to help him relax and then fell asleep for the procedure. Ian and I then left the procedure room and went back to wait in the Pediatric Surgery waiting room otherwise known as "Big Bird" and we waited and waited and waited. We were told that the procedure could take 20 minutes to 2 hours...At about 1100 we were approached and taken to the PACU(post anesthesia care unit) where Braden was recovering. We were told that Dr. Stanley (Braden's surgeon) needed to review the images that were taken and would talk to us later due to the fact that Dr. Stanley was completing another Major surgery, so we did not know when he would be talking with us. Braden was then taken to his room on the 6th floor to recover further and the afternoon was sure to be interesting.

Braden was required to lay completely flat and still for 6 hours following the procedure which meant for another 5 hours we would be reminding Braden to remain flat and still...hard for an adult to do and even harder for a 6 year old to do. But he did it and we were very proud of him. At 500pm Braden was able to sit up and move about freely. Ian and I continued to wait and wait and wait to see if we would get any word on how everything looked from the angiogram. At about 10pm we were both exhausted and decided to stay at the hospital just in case Dr. Stanley was to come in early to talk with us...It was another uneventful night and we got a few good hours of sleep......