The Shirt Doesn't Lie!

"How's Rory doing?" A common question I get often. The answer: Good. Rory's doing good. She continues to respond well to the dilations, and quite frequently does not require them. We await the manometry study from the Children's Hospital Orange County (you can call it CHOC, if you're in the know). 

It has been a big pain getting the referral required to go 'out of network' for this test. But CHOC is the only place in southern california to get this done for babies, so we have no choice. And while you might immediately jump to the conclusion that the insurance company is the hold up, that isn't necessarily the case here. The referral was supposed to come through the GI's office, and we're pretty sure at one time or another they 1) dropped it, 2) referred to the wrong hospital, and 3) ordered the wrong test.

But, with some help from the pediatric surgion, even calling CHOC and speaking to those folks himself, we've finally got a date for the initial consultation! Yes, initial consultation. You didn't think they were going to let us walk in off the street and get the procedure performed, did you? At least we've got our foot in the door now. Unfortunately, I doubt we'll make the schedule for the actual test being performed in this calendar year.

From the CHOC website:

Anorectal manometry
This test helps determine the strength of the muscles in the rectum and anus. These muscles normally tighten to hold in a bowel movement and relax when a bowel movement is passed. Anorectal manometry is helpful in evaluating anorectal malformations and Hirschsprung's disease, among other problems. A small tube is placed into the rectum, and the pressures inside the anus and rectum are measured.