Today we went to the Hypertensive Clinic at TCH and met with Dr. Feig. He is a very nice man. After checking Ben over and reading through the numerous reports of the testing that we have already done on his kidneys, the first thing the doctor told us was he not overly worried at the moment. Ben’s blood pressure is stable on medication. That gives us some time to do some research to figure out why Ben continues to have high blood pressure. So he said that more than likely it is one of two things . . .
1. This is residual hypertension due to his heart surgery in Nov 09, and it will resolve itself in 12-18 months.
2. There is some scar tissue in his kidneys from being on the bypass machine during his two surgeries (there is a big long explanation to what caused the scar tissue, but I don’t have the time or the inclination to explain it all tonight). If that is the case, we will wean him off of his atenolol and the enalapril will help to heal his kidneys (at least 1/3 of the time this will work).
So we will go in the next month to have a DMSA scan (this is a test where they inject a dye into his kidneys and then take a picture to see if there is any scar tissue or damage in the kidneys) and then back to the renal doctor for a followup. Hopefully this will give us some answers. If not, the doctor has other possibilities that can be causing his high blood pressure.
Some have asked us why do you need to know why he has high blood pressure. I think they just assume that he has heart issues to it would be natural that he might have high blood pressure or I think they assume that people have high blood pressure all of the time, so what is the big deal. Well . . . adults have high blood pressure. It is not natural for a seven year old to have high blood pressure regardless of his heart history. It is not good to have high blood pressure long term. It damages your heart, brain, and kidneys. And as the doctor said yesterday, Ben needs all three.
This was not terrible news. We are just on another journey with Ben’s health. It is a branch off the main line, but one that must be travelled.
The Puddles 
Last May/June, we weren’t sure if David would be on dialysis forever or not. A few months later after a very bad few weeks, his kidneys, heart, lungs, etc are better than they have been for years. The power of the Med Center and the doctors (as well as a good healthy dose of prayer) can work miracles and that is what I wish for Ben and his family. Hang in there Kath. Peace and love. And thanks for the updates.