Mystery fluid and the Daytona 500

7:45am

Taylor was back in Gainesville on Wednesday to see a new Doctor regarding the fluid in his left ear. The main Doctor that is treating him detected what he was certain was spinal fluid and said it's likely leaking from the skull fracture, and detected some 2 weeks ago during a visit. The fluid was also present during a previous trip to Gainesville months ago.

But, when he was examined on Wednesday - nothing. This Doctor said the leak wouldn't come and go, so she's not sure what's going on since he's had no other issues (allergies, etc) that would create fluid. She was not overly concerned about it so for now we'll just wait to see if it returns.

Taylor was also given another hearing test to see if there has been any improvement since one he took in June. Unfortunately, there has been no improvement in his left ear. He is essentially deaf in that ear. There are a couple of frequencies where he could detect some sound, but it was so negligible that it barely rated on the chart.

The best option for helping his hearing is a hearing aid that he would use in the left ear, that sends sound to the right ear. This would allow him to hear things on his left side that he's now not able to hear. But, for now Taylor is not real crazy about hearing aids. And, the tests show that the hearing on his right side is substantially above normal. The downside to that is he is at greater risk for damaging hearing in the right ear.

Last week, Suzie's friend, Herb Branham (a NASCAR hot-shot) sent Taylor 4 tickets to the Daytona 500, along with an Infield pass. This year was the 50th running of the Daytona 500, and it was sold out.

Taylor took 3 friends who likely would have never been able to go otherwise, and they headed out at 8am for the race that started at 3pm. He called 1/2 hour after arriving to tell us how cool it was. He wasn't able to make it through the whole race, so they had to leave about 3/4 of the way through. He did a lot of walking and said he just couldn't go any further.

His stamina is still not even close to what it was before the accident. But, he walks almost every day to a friend's house or sometimes just walks to downtown to get exercise. We've noticed his right leg is not working as well as it has been, and he said it feels like he has some weights attached to it. His balance has been a little skewed lately also, so we're making an appointment to get him back to the physical therapist to see what may be going on. They probably have some exercises he can do to strengthen his right side.

Plan B

9:00am

Taylor met with the Otolaryngologist (the facial paralysis Dr.) at Shands Hospital in Gainesville on Tuesday.

He kinda officially concluded what everyone pretty much knew - that the nerve which controls the left side of Taylor's face is not regenerating.

He had previously talked to Taylor about several different procedures, and Taylor decided to go for the chewing muscle transplant.

The Dr. also talked about a procedure called a "sling" where "bands" are implanted and the areas of the face that have no movement and are tightened to give a more natural appearance in the "static" or at rest position. This procedure will not provide movement like the transplant will.

The sling procedure has a shorter recovery time and the results are almost immediate, where the transplant procedure is something that therapists will have to work with Taylor on to get the best results.

So, Taylor has decided to go for the sling procedure now, and do the transplant at a later time - either late this year or next year. A date hasn't been set for the Sling, but it will happen some time in May.

The Dr. said that Taylor has essentially lost all hearing in his left ear. He examined it and found clear fluid behind the drum that he thinks is spinal fluid leaking from the skull fracture. He said while it sounds scary, it is treatable and we shouldn't worry. Easy for him to say. Taylor will return to Gainesville soon to see a Neurotologist to verify that the fluid is spinal fluid and how to go about fixing the problem.

One reason we were told we shouldn't worry about the fluid is that Taylor is the "Poster Child" for recovering brain injury patients. He is one more medical professional who puts Taylor at the top of the "Patients with the most amazing recovery" list.

On the educational front, Taylor is maintaing a 3.75 GPA.....not bad for a recovering brain injury patient!