Chapter 54: CH 50

A minute ago, the operating theater

The third baby was taken out, and Shen Fangyu cut the umbilical cord. The nurse took the baby, and he put down the surgical scissors, saying to everyone, “Thank you all, it’s been hard work.” He then smiled at the mother and said, “You’ve worked hard too.”

Wang Qi, the mother from bed 23, looked tired and happy as she smiled, her sweat-soaked hair was clinging to her temples in locks, and her lower limbs were anesthetized so she couldn’t feel pain for the moment. She was immersed in the joy of a successful birth, and the corners of her mouth slowly curled up.

It was difficult for triplets to be born at full term, most of them were born prematurely, and Wang Qin was no exception. After giving birth, she only got one look before the babies were put in an incubator and sent to the intensive care unit.

Seeing Wang Qin lower her eyes and her mood sinking, Shen Fangyu comforted her, “You’ll see them soon, don’t be sad.”

Wang Qin nodded and sighed. A moment later, she suddenly frowned and coughed softly.

Shen Fangyu was originally looking at the condition of the uterus and was preparing to deliver the placenta when he heard the sound, and his gaze suddenly paused. A moment later, Wang Qin followed with another cough.

The dry sound did not sound too unusual, but it made Shen Fangyu’s pupils shrink.

“Prepare the endotracheal intubation.” He spoke out abruptly.

“Huh?” The anesthetist froze.

“Quickly,” Shen Fangyu repeated, “quickly!”

The moment the anesthesiologist brought the endotracheal intubation equipment, Wang Qin, who had been normal a moment ago, rolled her eyes back and suddenly began to convulse violently.

Shen Fangyu suddenly raised his eyes to the ECG monitor, and before he could even catch his breath, the operating room suddenly echoed with a violent and rapid alarm, and the various data that were stable half a minute ago began to plummet. In an instant, four zeros appeared indifferently on the ECG monitor:

P: pulse rate 0 beats/min, R: heart rate 0 beats/min, BP: blood pressure 0 mmHg, SpO2: blood oxygen saturation 0!

–Respiratory and cardiac arrest!

The operating room was in a state of panic as the sharp alarm resounded in everyone’s hearts.

“Two milligrams of epinephrine in two divided doses, twenty milligrams of dexamethasone intravenously!”

Shen Fangyu spoke extremely fast as he folded his hands and pressed heavily on the point where the lower and middle thirds of Wang Qin’s sternum met.

As his body rose and fell, he pressed harder and harder in rhythm. Black, non-coagulated blood flowed from Wang Qin’s uterine cavity and the cannula entering Wang Qin’s trachea. The mechanical ventilation was carried out rhythmically, and beads of sweat rolled down Shen Fangyu’s forehead.

External chest compressions were extremely strenuous, and Shen Fangyu’s whole body was drenched.

“Give epinephrine again,” he glanced at the ECG monitor and gave quick directions, “four milligrams in divided doses, one hundred and twenty-five milligrams of aminophylline intravenously, and notify the resuscitation team.” He said and pursed his lips, “and give the family a critical illness notice.”

—————-

“It’s an amniotic fluid embolism!”

The news flew out from the operating room as if it had grown legs, and Jiang Xu’s jaw tightened, his heart beating like a drum.

The two most feared conditions in obstetrics were postpartum hemorrhage and amniotic fluid embolism.

Amniotic fluid embolism is extremely rare, and there are no signs before it appears. The most frightening thing is that it is extremely difficult to identify the clinical symptoms. The disease progresses very quickly, from the appearance of atypical symptoms to death, which may even happen in less than a minute, leaving no time for the medical staff to react.

It was also known as the “death draw” because it can occur in any woman for no apparent reason and is very difficult to avoid and predict before delivery. Moreover, the fatality rate is very high, and death comes quickly.

That’s why some doctors would joke that if they could save a patient from an amniotic fluid embolism, it would be enough for the attending doctor to brag about it for the rest of his life.

“Dr Jiang!”

Jiang Xu suddenly turned around, and the nurse on her rounds spoke up as if she had seen a savior: “Dr Jiang, Dr Li gave a critical illness notice to the family and got into an argument with them, go and take a look!”

Jiang Xu lifted his feet and walked out. As soon as he reached the door of the operating room with the patient, he heard the sound of a violent argument –

“What the fuck is going on? We said we wanted a natural delivery, but you had to drag her into the operating room for more money. We brought a healthy person, but it’s only been a few hours and you’re suddenly giving me a critical illness notice!”

The man and Li Sheng shoved each other and said, “If you don’t give me an explanation today, none of you will be able to get away with it!” He shouted, “Tell that Shen Fangyu to come out, he’s the one who wanted my wife to have a cesarean section; I’m not a man if I don’t beat him to death today!”

Li Sheng was still trying to explain in vain, “Calm down, the amniotic fluid embolism is an emergency, we are doing our best to save…” The man hammered his fist into the side of his face before he finished his sentence, “Call your director! “

Li Sheng stumbled and took a half step back, covering his face in pain. The man was cursing and wanted to punch him a second time, but Jiang Xu blocked his fist.

Wang Qin’s husband inclined his head and squinted at Jiang Xu. “Are you the director?”

“A critical illness notice is not a death notice,” Jiang Xu said, his face as heavy as a river. “Dr. Shen is doing his best to save the patient, he doesn’t have time to fight with you!”

“Save?” The man was extremely upset, and his voice was as loud as a bell: “How can you save a patient when she’s fucking critically ill? Are you trying to extort money again?” He said, “I think we should make that Dr. Shen come out and pay! How did he do the operation?”

Jiang Xu took a deep breath and said, “No one wants a patient to have an amniotic fluid embolism, there’s no way for a doctor to predict such an unexpected situation-“

He didn’t finish his sentence, but the man was about to strike him again, and Li Sheng was quick to try to protect Jiang Xu. Jiang Xu pulled him away, turned his head to avoid the man’s menacing fist, and pointed at the bridge of the man’s nose:

“Please calm down! Your wife is still alive! Shen Fangyu hasn’t even given up, who are you to give up?”

“Dr. Jiang, don’t say anything,” Li Sheng tugged at his coat and lowered his voice, “You weren’t in the operating room and didn’t see the situation, the patient’s condition… can’t be saved.”

“She can be saved,” Jiang Xu turned around and walked into the operating room, oblivious to the fact that his eyes were bloodshot and even his voice was trembling, “she will be saved.”

Even if she isn’t, it wasn’t Shen Fangyu’s fault.

There was chaos in the corridor of the operating room. Jiang Xu had changed into scrubs and washed his hands. He lifted his foot to step on the sensor that opened the door, and after a moment’s pause, he withdrew his foot.

The more doctors there were in the operating room, the more chaos. It was useless for him to go there now, as Shen Fangyu was in the operating room, and he would make the most reasonable judgment. He exhaled slowly and walked back to the dressing room, intending to go back to his office and wait for the results.

However, after a moment’s hesitation, he finally stopped and did not open the locker containing his regular clothes, but sat down against the wall.

It was not the first time Jiang Xu had encountered such an unexpected situation, but he had always been at the front line of the resuscitation, and there wasn’t any extra space in his mind for worry and concern.

Only today did he realize that waiting outside the operating room was far more stressful than standing by the operating table.

He was worried about bed 23, and he was also worried about Shen Fangyu.

Jiang Xu tilted his head back and leaned against the wall of the dressing room, perhaps the cold floor and walls were the only things that could help him calm and quiet his panicked mind right now.

But there was no time for panic when one was actually on the operating table, and the constant chest compressions were causing Shen Fangyu to almost lose his strength.

Every doctor has his or her surgical habits, and Shen Fangyu’s operating theater, which was always relaxed and had a few gags, was somber at this time. Everyone in the theater had a very serious look on their faces, and no one had the energy or inclination to laugh.

The resuscitation process seemed incredibly long at this point, but there was no hope in sight.

The patient’s consciousness remained blurred as the various drugs were administered. Just when Shen Fangyu felt that he was on the verge of not feeling the presence of his arms, the numbers on the ECG monitor finally stabilized.

“It’s back,” Zhang Cheng cried out with tears of joy, “the heart rate and blood pressure are back!”

After seven minutes of continuous resuscitation, the patient’s heart rate recovered, blood pressure reached 150 /110 mmHg, and the placenta spontaneously absconded.

“Maintain them with vasoactive drugs,” Shen Fangyu released his hand, and sweat that even his long eyelashes could not stop kept falling into his eyes. The stinging sensation made him close his eyes, and he exhaled slowly as he said to the person beside him, “Wipe the sweat.”

The nurse wiped the sweat from his forehead and eyes. Dr. Shen, who had regained his sight, re-sterilized his hands and picked up the suture needle.

The Hayman uterine bandages helped stop the patient’s bleeding, and as resuscitative measures were performed, Wang Qin’s indicators gradually stabilized and her oxygen saturation rebounded.

“Explore the abdominal cavity for bleeding.”

The muscles were dark purple and the wound surface was bleeding from the trauma, and Zhang Cheng said, “There is also blood seeping from the muscles and under the sheath.”

Shen Fangyu was silent for a moment and said, “Prepare for a subtotal hysterectomy and have the patient’s family sign a consent form for the surgery.”

Two hours later, the patient, who had survived death, was wheeled out of the operating room and transferred to the intensive care unit.

Wang Qin was quickly moved, and the crowd dispersed one by one.

Jiang Xu suddenly looked up when there was a loud noise at the door, and his eyes suddenly bumped into Shen Fangyu, who had walked into the dressing room.

He looked tired and soaked through, his green scrubs bearing wet marks. The blue surgical cap covering his hair revealed a slightly sweaty forehead.

Shen Fangyu didn’t make a sound when he saw Jiang Xu, and he didn’t show whether he was surprised or not. He only paused very briefly in place before walking straight up to Jiang Xu and crouching down gently, meeting his gaze levelly.

The two men quietly stared at each other in the corner of the changing room, neither of them saying a word.

After a long time, Jiang Xu suddenly raised his hand and gently removed Shen Fangyu’s mask. Shen Fangyu’s pale face was stricken with red marks from the mask, and the entire lower half of his face was abnormally red from being smothered by the heat.

Shen Fangyu kept looking at him, allowing him to reach out to remove his mask, allowing his palm to press against his face, before saying to him, “I’m so tired, Jiang Xu.”

“She’s saved?” Jiang Xu asked softly.

Shen Fangyu rolled his eyes and said, “Yes, she’s saved.”

Before Jiang Xu could say anything else, Shen Fangyu, who had just complained that he was tired, suddenly grabbed his hand and picked him up off the ground. Jiang Xu was suddenly startled and asked, “What are you doing?”

“Who told you to sit on the ground?” The brief moment of silence was short-lived, and Shen Fangyu suddenly seemed to be energized. “There are so many chairs in the changing room, but you had to sit on the floor. I heard that you even reasoned with the family in front of the operating room, defending me. Jiang Xu, how come I didn’t know you were that patient; Ma Hao will cry when he finds out, right?”

“You put me down!” Jiang Xu glared at him with a scowl, his hand already poised to make a fist.

Shen Fangyu didn’t want to be hit just after the stressful operation, so he took a few steps and placed him on a chair in the lounge, not forgetting to threaten, “If you sit on the floor again, I’ll carry you around and do ward rounds.”

“Just say so if you’re tired of living. What’s the point of arguing with anxious and angry family members? If they really want to complain, I’ll have the Health Bureau deal with them. That family has an explosive temper, and Li Sheng’s tooth was even knocked out.” Shen Fangyu’s heart palpitated with fear. “Fortunately, you weren’t hurt.”

Jiang Xu didn’t want to argue with the family either. The patient was still fine before entering the operating room but was suddenly in critical condition. It was not uncommon for family members to have difficulty accepting it and becoming angry.

But for some reason, when he heard Wang Qin’s husband say that about Shen Fangyu, he couldn’t resist the urge to defend him.

He was clearly not one who had verbal arguments either.

He swept a glance at Shen Fangyu and asked, “How is Li Sheng?”

“Oh, so you quarreled with the family because of him, I thought you were concerned about me,” Shen Fangyu joked with a smile. “He’s fine, his tooth was so badly decayed, but he was afraid of the pain and put off pulling it out. So now he just has to get a new one installed in his upper dentistry. ”

Jiang Xu lowered his eyes as Shen Fangyu looked at the takeout box on the table and asked, “Should we eat?”

He took the box to heat it and opened the lid, only to find that Jiang Xu hadn’t touched any of the dishes. “Why didn’t you eat? It’s not good?”

Jiang Xu gave him a blank look.

Shen Fangyu instantly understood and smiled a little subtly, “Jiang Xu, why are you so kind to me?”

Jiang Xu got up to leave, but Shen Fangyu pulled him back. “Come home,” he straightened up, his eyes serious as he looked at Jiang Xu, “Okay?”

Jiang Xu’s heart skipped a beat, suddenly feeling a little disoriented by the look in his eyes.

However, Shen Fangyu went on to say, “It took a lot of effort to make your stomach a little better, and it’s now hard to see you tossing your rotten stomach every day, so come back and follow the doctor’s orders and eat properly, okay?”

“……” Jiang Xu said, “Who wants you to worry about my stomach.”

“Doctor’s instinct, Jiang Xu,” said Shen Fangyu, “I can’t help it.”

“Yu Sang doesn’t eat properly either, you can go and control him.”

“If the upper beam is not right, the lower beam is crooked, and he just follows your example in everything,” Shen Fangyu said, “So, Dr Jiang, that’s all the more reason for you to set a good example for your students.”

Jiang Xu glanced at him and said, “Then please remember to button your coat properly next time you wear it, the students in your group have been learning from you and have been criticized by Teacher Cui several times.”

“Since you know the right way to do it,” Shen Fangyu said, talking poorly to him, “you can help me do it.”

“Do you have to be so shameless?”

“You can take it off for me, but you can’t put it on for me?”

“Shen, Fang, Yu!” Jiang Xu stood up, but he ran into Shen Fangyu’s smile from successfully teasing him. “Okay, okay, don’t worry, you didn’t take it off that day, I did it myself.”

Jiang Xu felt suffocated.

He didn’t know what he had done to give Shen Fangyu the illusion that they were close enough for him to dare make such a joke in front of him.

What made him even more upset was the fact that this man, who had clearly forgotten everything, was now talking all over the place and had actually gotten some details that he didn’t want to recall right.

For example, Shen Fangyu’s clothes were actually …… damn it!

Jiang Xu was so angry that he walked out without looking back, and Shen Fangyu hurriedly got up and went after him.

Before Jiang Xu became completely enraged, he softened his voice and managed to say the right words: “I was really wrong, Jiang Xu, please forgive me!”

He added, “I kind of miss you.”