Three-Year-Old Swallows Acid
Retains Smile, Voice, Life In A
(Continuad from Pag* B 2)
behavior had concerned the
family.
“The nurses said they thought
she felt she was being punished
because she’d been bad,” relates
grandmother Barb. “You could
see that sort of scared look in her
eyes at first.” The family and med
ical staff made special efforts to
reassure Rebecca that she was not
being punished.
By the end of her first weekend
back home, Rebecca was unable
to keep any food in her stomach.
Tuesday, November 24, two days
before Thanksgiving, she was
readmitted to Hershey. Still unab
le to keep any nutrients in her sys
tem. doctors put her on intrave
neous feedings and continued to
run numerous tests and another
throat scope to examine the eso
phagus and stomach damage.
“They did minor procedures to
see if major surgery could be
avoided,” says Lona.
On the Friday following
Thanksgiving, a “broviac” tube
was inserted to allow feedings to
the little girl who was unable to
eat and losing weight Another
throat scope on December 1
showed that the opening of Rebec
ca’s stomach had closed to the
intestine; vomiting remained a
continuing problem due to the liq
uids manufactured by her throat
and stomach.
Though she had been a wonder
fully cooperative patient, Rebecca
finally became a little “grumpy,”
Lona remembers, at the tube doc
tors then inserted through her nose
to her stomach, to drain off the liq
uids. It remained there for a week,
when another throat scope was
scheduled.
“They told me she might be
okay, they might be able to dilate
her esophagus if it wasn’t too bad,
or she might need feeding tubes
surgically inserted,” says Lona.
The prognosis was not favorable;
Rebecca was taken to surgery on
December 8.
When she next saw Rebecca,
the little girl was back in ICU,
with a six-inch incision, numerous
tubes and monitor wires, and oxy
gen. Again, Rebecca made rapid
improvement
Within a week, only three tubes
remained attached to her body,
those to the stomach and the intes
tine, and the broviac, which would
remain for feedings and antibio
tics. Lona was instructed how to
operate the feeding pump to which
Rebecca would be attached 12
hours nightly'
> gei
right are Rebecca Watki
left.
noon, and on the changing and
cleaning of the dressings.
On December 17, Rebecca
celebrated with a strawberry lolli
pop. And, three days before
Christmas, she was allowed to go
home, although she remained on a
clear liquid, very limited, diet Her
ordeal, however, was far from
over. She had to return weekly for
dilation of her esophagus; if dila
tion failed, more surgery would
follow.
Lone’a January 27 trip with
Rebecca to the Center did not start
out well.
“I had a flat tire on the way; a
state trooper changed it for me,”
she relates. “Then, we waited four
hours because the doctor was in
emergency surgery. I knew what
they were going to say about
Rebecca before they said it”
Although the lining was begin
ning to regrow in Rebecca’s sto
mach, the severely damaged tissue
in her esophagus and the area of
her stomach attached to the small
intestine would need to be
removed, to prevent likely deve
lopment of cancer. Once again,
this undaunted, three-year-old
cheerfully packed a few special
toys for yet another hospital stay.
“They had put her back on a liq
uid diet; but she got upset with me
because I threw away a pickle I
took out of a sandwich. She
wanted me to save it for her when
she could eat,” Lona recalls with a
grin.
While waiting for the February
3 esophagus-replacement surgery,
Lona and Rebecca received spe
cial visitors. Michael Stuber, 2-‘/i
year-old from Shafferstown, was
Hershey’s first esophagus replace
ment patient He and his mother,
Gretta, spent most of a day with
Lona and Rebecca.
Michael had swallowed a
diluted solution of Red Devil Lye,
but hadn’t been diagnosed until
six hours later. Several months
passed until partial esophagus
replacement surgery was
attempted.
“It was so nice to have someone
like that someone else who had
gone through a similar thing, to
talk to, to answer questions,” Lona
says. “It really helped a lot.”
After a sleepless night for Lona.
Rebecca was taken to surgery at 9
a.m. In a 14-hour-long operation,
doctors removed her esophagus
and a quarter of her stomach,
replacing the -esophagus with a
section of her colon. Waiting
through the duration with Lona
was her friend, Troy Wilson; at
1:30 the following morning, Lona
# V
ing with v > calves at the Taylor farm; from
and her mother Lona, and grandmother Barbara Taylor,
was allowed to visit her daughter
in intensive care.
Again, more than 20 lubes and
monitoring devices were attached
to her body. With a badly-swelled
face and a breathing tube, she was
unable to talk. Doctors had
warned that it was possible dam
age could occur to ho > vocal cords
through the surgery, an immediate
concern for Lona that later proved
unfounded.
Through that weekend, she
remained in considerable pain;
medication seemed to be adding to
her discomfort and disorientation.
At Lena’s request, the morphine
Rebecca was on was reduced and
Tylenol added. By Monday she
was much better and her improve
ment continued tapdily through
the week.
Ten days after her esophagus
replacement, Rebecca was given
an ounce of juice every hour. The
next day, Valentine’s Day, she
was put on a clear liquid diet
Satisfied with her progress.
Rebecca’s doctor told her she
could have anything to eat she
wanted.
“Out of an assortment of things
like cookies, crackers, chips,
doughnuts, she picked out cheese
and crackers,” Lona remembers.
On February 17, Rebecca was
discharged. A plastic “button”
opening had been inserted in place
of the plastic tube, allowing for
nighttime pump feedings to con
tinue for another month. It will
remain inserted indefinitely as a
precaution, should problems deve
lop in the future requiring intend
feedings. Monthly visits to Her
shey are likely to continue as long
as the button remains inserted, and
to check her weight. A barium
swallow test is scheduled in
August to check the healing and
progress Rebecca makes.
“The doctors are amazed at how
well she has healed,” says Lona of
her daughter's miraculous recov
ery. “She really likes fruit, though
tough membranes like those in
oranges, and seed must be
removed. Anything with shells
and meats she has to chew for a
long time.”
“Her prognosis is faily good,”
emphasizes Dr. Dillon. “The col
on tissue doesn’t function quite
like an esophagus would, but there
is no reason why she can’t live a
fulfilling life.”
The operation is not particularly
difficult, notes Dr. Dillon, but it is
long; and it involves a “pretty
good rearrangement” of the
body’s physiology. Helping Dr.
Dillon with Rebecca’s surgery
Pipeline Cleaner
mazing Recovery
was Dr. Robert Gilley; the two
surgeons practice in a partnership
with a third physician. Dr. Tom
KrummeL and have performed
three or four esophagus replace
ments through their careers, two
since practicing at Hershey.
“We don’t like to have to do
this, because. obviously its a
severe injury,” stresses Dr. Dillon.
“Kids are the most likely to have
this happen because of their inges
tion of such substances.”
On Sunday, June 6, Rebecca
will appear on the Children’s Mir
acle Network Telethon carried on
Channel 8 WGAL-TV. Her
appearance is scheduled for about
8:40 a.m. on this telethon fund
raiser event, to be broadcast from
Hershey Park, to benefit the Penn
State Children’s Hospital.-
“A lot of prayers went up for
her,” says grandmother Barb Tay
lor ‘To God be the glory for her
miraculous healing.” And, to the
numerous area churches which
included Rebecca in their service
prayers and prayer circles, the
family expresses deep apprecia
tion for such caring community
support.
“I’ve learned I can handle a lot
more than I ever thought I would
be able to,” relates Lona of the
challenge of learning to change,
clean and attach Rebecca’s tubes
and incision dressings. “And I’ve
tried to look on the good side as
much as possible and try not to be
so hard on myself.”
Though Rebecca has no restric
tions on her physical activities
even swimming is allowed the
button does pop once in awhile.
On one such occasion, caregivers
at the Dallas town High School
student child care classes she
attends nearly panicked, while
Rebecca matter-of-factly told
them what happened and what to
do.
“So while some parents stock
Hilary, a Holstein heifer, Is a favorite pet of Rebecca’s.
ig jgw
time during her hospital stays after taking a swallow of
dairy pipeline acid last November.
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 5, 1993-B5
Rebecca has a medical supply bag
that goes with her,” adds lima.
Far more knowledgeable of
medical terms and procedures
than many adults after her
extended hospital stays, Rebecca
does not seem to have been emo
tionally traumatized by her life
threatening experience.
“They tell the kids everything
they’re doing and have dolls in the
playroom where the children can
pretend to give IV’s, change
dressings, check blood pressure
and use stethoscopes. They tell
parents to just listen to their child
ren while they're playing,” Lona
relates in praise erf the Hershey
Medical Center staff. “Rebecca
does surgery on her dolls and
changes their dressings using sup
plies we brought home with her.
I’ve overheard her tell her doll that
‘lt’s okay, mommy’s out in the
waiting room.’”
Due to the newness of the eso
phagus replacement surgery, Lona
and her friend Gretta Stuber are
interested in helping to form a
support group for parents facing
such a crisis with their child.
“You have personal, little prob
lems, questions, concerns, experi
ences that another parent can
share, but that a doctor wouldn’t
know,” she explains. “It went two
months before I really had anyone
to talk with who had personally
gone through this.”
Lona willingly shares the story
of the health crisis faced by
Rebecca in order to remind other
farm families of the danger pre
sent everyday from hazardous
chemicals commonly used in
dairy houses for milk equipment
cleaning.
“Make sure that all solutions
arc out of reach!” she vehemently
stresses. “And never put them in
any land of a cup that might be