Super Stud Kidney

Most people dont know this (because I didnt really broadcast it) but when I was 16 weeks pregnant with Brody I had an early ultra-sound that showed several dark spots on his right kidney. I was originally told it was a multi-cystic kidney, which from what little bit I researched about it, can be fatal. I saw a specialist my entire pregnancy, having weekly, sometime bi-weekly ultrasounds to monitor the "spots" on his kidney. I didnt tell very many people because I didnt really want that to be what my pregnancy was about, I just wanted people to be excited to meet Brody, not worried sick like I was for 9 months. I was hopeful, but there was always a part of me that worried... worried that I had done something to cause this problem, worried that my baby was sick and may never have a "normal" life, worried that he might be taken from me to soon.

Then Brody was born and we could get more answers. They wouldnt be doing an ultra-sound through me to get to him anymore (which still blows my mind that they could do that) but they could just do the u/s on him directly which would tell us so much more. At 3 weeks old I took my brand new baby to Scottish Rite to have a gammet of tests run. He has several ultra-sounds, had radioactive dye injected into him for another test and had to be strapped down to a machine for an hour for another. It was awful to watch but well worth it once we got the results.

Brody simply had an underdeveloped right kidney. The black spot on the ultra-sound was just that, a blob, the top part of the kidney that never formed. The cool thing is that when a baby is developing in the womb and something happens like one kidney not fully developing, the other kidney actually compensates for it. So Brody has a "super" kidney on the left side. If he were to lose part of his kidney later in life, the other kidney wouldnt do that, but because it happened while he was developing, the left kidney stepped up to the plate. =)

Since that testing at 3 weeks he has been back 4 more times to have a renal bladder ultra-sound to monitor it and make sure nothing has changed. The most recent one being today. Today I was told that Brody has almost 100% kidney function. The only difference is that our kidneys function at about 50/50. Fifty percent right and fifty percent left. Brody's funstion at 1/3 (right) and 2/3 (left super stud kidney). Regardless the kidneys are doing there job and functioning just as good as anyone elses.

The best news of the day.... we dont have to go back until he is five!!!!

He wasn't really a fan of the visit today... poor little guy.