David Burns

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We have been trying to balance sharing information and David's privacy and we thank you for your patience as we continue to do so.

New Year's Day was an ordinary one for David – miles of walking around the city and feeling just fine. But on Tuesday, January 2, David very suddenly started feeling ill. He was admitted to University of Chicago where a number of tests were performed that week. On Saturday, January 6, he underwent open heart surgery for the second time in his life to replace the aortic valve again and address a few other heart issues. The surgery was a long one, and David has been fully sedated since then to help his body heal. 

As we launch this site on January 15, his heart is strong. His lungs were compromised the week before surgery with fluid build-up and he is intubated to facilitate ventilation but showing improvement. As we have witnessed his care since the surgery it has been all about balance. Quite a number of specialty teams are part of his daily care managing the post-operative complications. They remind us they are always balancing his head, heart and lungs with his other organs and vascular system. 

David is still in critical condition. The neurology team is currently conducting daily CT scans. They found evidence that David had a stroke, likely during the initial surgery. It is too early to tell what the immediate effects will be and no way to yet know the lasting effects. Much of his care right now is relating to minimizing any additional damage.

We thank everyone for keeping David in their thoughts and for sending him as many healing powers and as much positive energy as possible. We appreciate not only the members of the family he was born in to, but the significant relationships he has with many friends from school, work and play. We will post updates as we know more of his forward progress!

– David's family #teamdavid #forwardeveryday
David and Nancy Burns, Laura Burns and Frank Romano, Sharon and Neelan Choksi, Diane Burns and Hector Linares