The Last Post Surgery Update

Back in May, I wrote about Angelica's experience having a dermoid cyst removed from her eye at 11 months old. I've noticed that a few people have landed on Minute for Mom looking for information about this subject, so I thought I'd post another update to let everyone know how things went in the days and months that have followed. Let me preface this by saying -- it has all been good news!

We first noticed the cyst when she was about four months old and it continued to grow with her as she got bigger. She saw a pediatric neurosurgeon to have it evaluated...we kept an eye on it from 4 months until 10 months when it was reevaluated and determined that it would not go away on its own. The neurosurgeon then had us have a CT scan (to determine if it really was a cyst, as well as figure out it's the exact position and if it was infringing on any important nerves or bone structures) and then we scheduled the surgery, which was performed at 11 months.

[caption id="attachment_251" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="At 4 months old"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_250" align="alignleft" width="214" caption="Photo taken the day of her first appt. to have the cyst evaluated."][/caption]

This was Angelica the day before we went into surgery, at 11 months old:


If you ignore the messy yogurt face and notice above her right eye (on your left) there is a lump...that was what the cyst looked like. The surgery itself only took about an hour.

Here is what followed in the days after surgery (from this you can see what a truly happy kid I have...I've never been this happy so soon after surgery!):

[caption id="attachment_236" align="alignleft" width="214" caption="Eight hours after surgery."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_237" align="alignleft" width="214" caption="Two days after surgery."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_238" align="alignleft" width="214" caption="3 days after surgery."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_239" align="alignleft" width="214" caption="2 1/2 weeks after surgery."][/caption]

In the days that followed, her eye, which was initially very swollen and bruised, started to heal. I was actually really surprised at how swollen and black and blue it was at first, but it healed pretty quickly and she didn't seem that bothered by it! They gave her a dose of pain medication before we left the hospital on the day of the surgery, and from there she had Tylenol for the next few days.

About two and a half weeks later, she turned one! By this point, the bruising and swelling was completely gone, the incision was healed except for a scar that's about 1/2 an inch long.

Fast forward to today...this was how it looked about two weeks ago:


Barely noticeable, right? It doesn't show up well in photographs at all anymore. Scott and I still notice it, and occasionally we'll get a comment from a stranger, like "Oh she must be walking now, look at that little scratch on her eyebrow! Does she trip and fall a lot?" For the most part it's barely noticeable and as she gets older, the neurosurgeon says it should disappear completely.

During the surgery, they were able to remove all of the cyst and did testing to confirm that it was a dermoid. They are also confident that it won't recur.

If you have questions, feel free to post them in the comments section or email me at andrea@minuteformom.com. Keep in mind that I'm not a medical professional, so I can't give medical advice, so none of what I say should be mistaken for a doctor's opinion - I can just relay what our experience was and if you're truly concerned, ask your pediatrician because they'll know best. That's what we did!

Post-Surgery Update

I meant to post this yesterday, but as you can imagine, it was a hectic day! This post may be a little longer than the norm, so bear with me...

We woke up around 4 a.m. because we had to be at the hosptital by 5:30. Surgery was scheduled for 7:30 but they needed time to get her checked in and take her vitals and get her nice and happy. Surprisingly, Angelica tolerated the getting up early part of things very well. She didn't make a peep the whole ride there, but she was wide awake. That's my girl!

The whole process went pretty quickly. We went to Arnold Palmer, got checked in, got taken up to the third floor surgical waiting room, got taken back to pre-op, got her vitals taken, and then she got some medicine in her nose that made her very happy. Scott had stepped out of the room for about ten seconds...she got the medicine right after he stepped out, and before he got back she went from being tense and agitated to being very relaxed.

That part was actually really funny. She hates doctors and so she was all tense about getting her vitals taken. She had napped, woken up, got more tests and then the medication. Within about 10 seconds she turned into dead weight in my arms and just looked up at me and started giggling. I though to myself, Oh my gosh, my baby's drunk! That was probably the only part of the experience that made me laugh.

At that point she loved everyone, doctors included, so when the nurse took her from me to take her to the OR, she just smiled away. At that point, Scott and I went to wait in the lobby.

It was about an hour later, Dr. Johnson came out to let us know how everything went. She said Angelica did fine, she tolerated the anesthesia well, and the surgery went by the book, no complications. They got all of the cyst and said they were confident that it was a dermoid cyst, as they had suspected, but it's going to pathology just in case.

We then went back to wait for a few more minutes for her to wake up, and then we got to see her. She was still drowsy, and was for pretty much the rest of the day.

She woke up at home around 1:00 and ate, and then we snuggled on the couch and had a good time. She was back to herself by the evening and today she woke up at her normal time, ready to go.

I have to say though, she does look rough. Her right eye is swollen shut and is a little tender if she tries to rub it, but otherwise it doesn't seem to bother her!

She's got a follow-up appointment on the 28th -- the day before her first birthday. My only hope is that she's made a good recovery by then so she can enjoy her birthday party!

My girl is a trooper. I wish I could be brave like her :)

Edit: Anyone who is going through a similar experience and has questions, feel free to ask! I searched the Internet for information on what to expect when a baby has surgery or what to expect following surgery to remove a dermoid cyst and came up with very little. Just click the comments button and ask away!

Surgery to remove cyst scheduled...

Today, we scheduled our baby girl for her very first surgery - it will be this coming Thursday.

Her's is so very minor - she has a dermoid cyst under her left eyebrow, which unfortunately has gotten bigger over the past few months. It's harmless, but will continue to grow unless it's removed. We had a CT scan done to make sure it's not connected to any muscle tissue that would affect movement of her eye (it doesn't) and so the surgery was scheduled.

Though this is a quick, outpatient procedure and she'll be back to normal in a day or two, it's still heart wrenching for a mom to think about her baby being sedated and operated on. Moms want to protect their children and I know there's really nothing I can do in this situation but trust the doctor and know we're doing the right thing.

And so I end with my entry in week's Memo from Mommy (a weekly contest at BabyRabies.com)

To: Angelica
From: Mommy

You're having minor surgery on Thursday and I know all will be fine but I can't help but panic. I'm taking comfort in the fact that you're a tough cookie, tougher than your wimpy mom. Keep on being tough, and remember mommy loves you!