BREATHING HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF JOY GREETS TRANSPLANT PATIENT ON RETURN HOME.Byline: Amy Raisin raisin, in botany and cooking raisin, dried fruit of certain varieties of grapevines bearing grapes with a high content of sugar and solid flesh. Although the fruit is sometimes artificially dehydrated, it is usually sun-dried. Staff Writer CANYON COUNTRY - Balloons and banners created by his former students greeted retired Emblem Elementary Principal Jay Caulfield as he returned Friday to his Canyon Country home, two weeks after undergoing a lung transplant lung transplant Surgery Transplant of a lung allograft into a Pt with failing lungs; 90 US centers perform LT; 35 centers perform ≥ 10/yr Mean wait time 18 months Indications COPD–eg, emphysema due to α1 . During a March 1 operation filmed by a crew from The Discovery Channel, doctors replaced Caulfield's right lung
The Right lung is divided into three lobes, superior, middle, and inferior, by two interlobular fissures: Fissures Pulmonary fibrosis is scarring in the lungs. Description Pulmonary fibrosis develops when the alveoli, tiny air sacs that transfer oxygen to the blood, become damaged and inflamed. , a chronic lung disease lung disease Pulmonary disease Pulmonology Any condition causing or indicating impaired lung function Types of LD Obstructive lung disease–↓ in air flow caused by a narrowing or blockage of airways–eg, asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis; that forced him to retire after 17 years as Emblem's principal. He was released Friday afternoon from UCLA Medical Center UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California. It is rated as one of the top three hospitals in the United States and is the top hospital on the West Coast according to US News & World Report. , and welcomed home by his family, with decorations provided by Emblem students and staffers heralding his return. ``I'm absolutely delighted,'' said Caulfield, 61, as he walked slowly from his driveway to the front door, followed excitedly by two young nieces. ``I might be pushing it a little but I'm just so glad to be home.'' Two years ago, the father of two grown sons went to a doctor for treatment of a hacking cough and fatigue. He eventually was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, and placed on a transplant list in May 1999. Since then, Caulfield and his wife, Barbara, carried two cell phones and a pager to immediately alert them if a donor was found. But on March 1, as Barbara helped her husband and his oxygen tank into a local restaurant, she mistakenly left the devices in the car. ``The hospital called our daughter-in-law in Sacramento and said we had 10 minutes to call in,'' said Barbara, 59. ``She called all our friends and then they tried restaurants we go to. A waiter came and said Jay had an emergency call. ``He felt so scared but so happy. He's always felt bad that someone had to die, but he wanted another chance,'' she said. The Caulfields were told the donor, a 28-year-old woman who died in Fresno, donated her lungs and heart to help people awaiting transplants. During the surgery, a Discovery Channel film crew documented Caulfield's medical journey for an educational cable TV show about lung transplants. The film crew later told Barbara what they had witnessed. ``When his lung came out, the photographer said, it was absolutely flat and diseased dis·eased adj. 1. Affected with disease. 2. Unsound or disordered. ,'' she said. ``They put the new lung in and it was like a miracle. It inflated and started functioning right away.'' Caulfield is now taking 20 prescriptions a day - anti-rejection steroids steroids, class of lipids having a particular molecular ring structure called the cyclopentanoperhydro-phenanthrene ring system. Steroids differ from one another in the structure of various side chains and additional rings. that cause Caulfield's skin to swell and retain water, resulting in bruises Bruises Definition Bruises, or ecchymoses, are a discoloration and tenderness of the skin or mucous membranes due to the leakage of blood from an injured blood vessel into the tissues. Pupura refers to bruising as the result of a disease condition. on his arms and legs. He admits, however, that he was nearing death before the transplant. ``It was getting closer all the time. I knew I was getting close to my limits,'' he said, home for the first time in months without needing oxygen or a cane. But he does miss his school and students. ``For me it's more than a profession. I truly love my job and if I could go back on a limited basis, I'd jump at the chance.'' The students and staffers are just grateful he's home. ``We're just thrilled. We've been praying for him to come home,'' said Clare Kurtz, Emblem's office manager and Caulfield's former secretary. ``It's been a group effort around here and we're so happy for him.'' CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) Corinna and Karie Habit welcome their uncle, Jay Caulfield, home to Canyon Country after life-saving lung transplant surgery at UCLA Medical Center. (2 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) A sign made by first-graders at Emblem Elementary sends best wishes to the school's former principal, Jay Caulfield, on his return from the hospital Friday. (3 -- ran in SAC edition only) Lung transplant recipient Jay Caulfield, 61, rests at his Canyon Country home Friday while niece Karie Habit, 6, sports a surgical mask A surgical mask is intended to be worn by health professionals during surgery and at other times to catch the bacteria shed in liquid droplets and aerosols from the wearer's mouth and nose. to keep her uncle from getting an infection. David R. Crane/Staff Photographer |
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