MRI done

Mom's MRI took longer than usual today: about 70 minutes. It could be that she was shifting around, or that the techs had trouble moving her onto and off the table, given her weakness. We didn't receive any word about her pre-MRI blood work (patients must arrive 90 minutes before their scheduled MRI to have blood work done); perhaps the docs will fill us in on Friday.

I should also note that Dad did finally get in contact with Dr. Royfe, the parents' primary care physician, earlier this week. He prescribed a diuretic called Maxzide for Mom's swollen feet, the idea being that Mom needs to push her fluids out faster in order to help reduce the swelling. Dad gave Mom her first half-tablet yesterday; we were told to start with half a tablet, once per day, then move up to a whole tablet if there was no noticeable effect on Mom's swelling. Today, she had a whole tablet, but after waiting several hours for the medicine to take effect, we saw that her feet were as swollen as ever.

As far as we know, based on what various doctors have told us, Mom's swollen feet are the result of the Decadron (steroid) she's been taking. Her blood work, the last few times she's had it done, has revealed nothing alarming, which seems to confirm that Decadron is the likeliest explanation for the current problem-- not overly salty food or the over-ingestion of carbs.

We're going to keep Mom's feet elevated for the rest of the day, and Dad will probably speak with the doctor again tomorrow. The swelling might be a natural consequence of the steroids, but if you saw what I've been seeing, you'd be pretty worried, too.


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