Well, we were afraid this would happen. And it did. The CT scan done today confirmed that Ella definitely has Hydrocephalus. The suspicion was raised when we discovered that the sutures in her skull (resulting from the hemispherectomy) have opened, and that there is now an opening about a finger wide that goes all along the top of her head. An x-ray confirmed this and the CT scan made it painfully clear. In fact the radiologist came to make sure we will be going to see Dr. Black immediately (he realized something was very wrong) and then, just to make sure, came to Dr. Black’s office as well. The visit with Dr. Black was short and blunt. Ella needs a shunt. The shunt will regulate the pressure of the brain fluids which is now simply too high. Dr. Black didn’t want to risk another day. Ella was promptly hospitalized and we are scheduled for surgery tomorrow morning. There isn’t really any other method of dealing with Hydrocephalus except the insertion of a shunt. In most cases (they tell us) once it is in there, it just works and you forget about it. Complications, however are not all that rare. They include clogging, infections and malfunction. The way the shunt works is that it regulates the pressure by transferring the liquid via tube to the stomach. About half of the children going through hemispherectomies need a shunt. We were thinking maybe this time we will get a break. Again no one asked us. Ella was in good spirits through all of this (except when then put an IV line in her arm). The prognosis is for a recovery of two – three days in the hospital. We’ll see. We are warily going into this latest chapter in the Ella chronicles. All fingers crossed.