Let's Talk Brain

It's amazing how many times during one's daily interactions the brain comes into conversation. Almost as much as God. We all know we take the Lord's name in vain. It's a fact of life. I've been known to exclaim, "Jesus!" in annoyance just as often as the next person. Same goes for the brain. "That's retarded," or "What am I? Brain dead?" Etc, etc, etc. "Playing with a half a deck" was always my favorite. Kind of ironic now ain't it?

This might be a recap for some of you, but for those folks who came into Leo's story later in the game, here is the official definition for hydranencephaly: "...a condition in which most of the brain mantle (cortical plate and hemispheric white matter) has been damaged, liquefied, and re-adsorbed." This condition may be the end result of more than one causative event. Infection and massive vascular occlusion involving the carotid arteries are the two most often cited. Because hydranencephaly may be a result of different processes the imaging can be somewhat variable. The "classic" appearance is complete replacement of the cerebral hemispheres with fluid. No cortical mantle is visible on MRI. The thalami and cerebellum are usually spared. Some sparing of the inferior frontal and inferior temporal lobes may be present. Basically Hydranencephaly indicates that a child is missing much or most of their cerebral hemispheres, that is, the two masses of folded brain tissue (cortex) that surround the brain stem.  Literally "anencephaly" means "without brain", but this is technically incorrect as a term for the cases to which it is applied, which almost invariably have a brain stem. The brain stem is most definitely a part of the brain, and a very important part of the brain.. " And to cap it all off, Leo also has, in the exact words the radiologist used when first we heard of all this, "massive hydrocephalus." Wiki's definition of this: (pronounced /ˌhaɪdrɵˈsɛfələs/), also known as "water on the brain," is a medical condition in which there is an abnormal accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the ventricles, or cavities, of the brain. This may cause increased intracranial pressure inside the skull and progressive enlargement of the head, convulsion, and mental disability. Hydrocephalus can also cause death. The name derives from the Greek words ὑδρο- (hudro-) "water", and κέφαλος (kephalos) "head." Whether Leo's hydrocephalus is because of the brain damage from the hydran, or the cause of it, no one can determine. 

They say we only use ten percent of our brains anyway, but what if ten percent is all you got? Well according to Leo, it's perfectly enough for him to run off now, and what's all the fuss Mom and Pop? 

Here's to hoping that Leo's half a deck has all the good cards in it. 

Tomorrow afternoon we've got the appointment with the neurosurgeon again to talk about shunt revision. Depending on what we decide to do about the fluid build up, Leo will probably be going into surgery probably not the same day, but very soon. As much as I hate the thought of surgery, I hate watching his head get pressurized worse. Pray for him, and for us.