Mom has had a rough and difficult 7 days physically. Please keep in mind, that even when mom has a bad week physically her mental happiness stays in pretty good order. Last Wednesday (may 23rd), Jim traveled down to spend some time with mom. When we arrived that evening mom was sitting on the toilet and could not get up. Jim and I got her up and mom was able to walk around the facility for well over an hour. We had a great visit with her. She made no attempt to 'flee' even when standing in front of the lobby door. However, mom's ability to get up and sit down progressed negatively throughout last Wednesday night and on Thursday, Jeannette and I took her again to Kaiser for a check-up. Mom had Edema in her lower extremities, as well. The Kaiser Dr. generally felt that the amount of medications that mom is on, namely the Depakote and Aricept were too high, and that this may be causing the insecurity in walking, progressive shaking and possible the edema. Over the past weekend, she had what was called an 'assisted fall' from the wheelchair she was sitting in. No injury occured.
I met with nearly the entire wellness staff at Aegis yesterday to adjust mom's care to include shower and bathroom oversight (for the time being). Mom is walking now, but still requiring assistance with getting up and sitting down. As the Depakote levels lower, we are hoping she can get up and down on her own.
Today (Wednesday May 30th) I will be taking mom for a PET scan. This was ordered by the Geriatric Doctor at Kaiser when Jim and I took mom a few weeks ago for an all day exam. This PET will allow the Doctors to determine how extensive the disease has progressed with mom. I have copied, from WebMD an overview of exactly what a PET scan does:
Positron emission tomography (PET) is a test that uses a special type of camera and a tracer (radioactive chemical) to look at organs in the body. The tracer usually is a substance (such as glucose) that can be used (metabolized) by cells in the body.
During the test, the tracer liquid is put into a vein (intravenous, or IV) in your arm. The tracer moves through your body, where much of it collects in the specific organ or tissue. The tracer gives off tiny positively charged particles (positrons). The camera records the positrons and turns the recording into pictures on a computer.
PET scan pictures do not show as much detail as computed tomography (CT) scans or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) because the pictures show only the location of the tracer. The PET picture may be matched with those from a CT scan to get more detailed information about where the tracer is located. A PET scan is often used to evaluate cancer, check blood flow, or see how organs are working.
See pictures of a PET scanner
and PET scans of the brain .Why It Is Done
A positron emission tomography (PET) scan is done to:- Study the brain's blood flow and metabolic activity. A PET scan can help a doctor find nervous system problems, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, transient ischemic attack (TIA), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Huntington's disease, stroke, and schizophrenia
Bill and Jim
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