Chapter 202: Chapter 203: Esophageal Perforation Repair within the Thoracic Cavity (Adding 3 more chapters for Alliance Hierarch Moonlight Exposing Human Hearts)
Little Yang bore a striking resemblance to Old Yang, with an honest and simple face that radiated trust.
Old Yangâs wife, on the other hand, was a farmer through and through, always wrapping her head with a scarf. Over sixty years old, she appeared as if she were in her seventies, having endured the hardships of life, her faint gaze seemingly unable to withstand any further blows.
The silvery white hair that covered her head had grown over the span of six months, a decade ago, while she was caring for the sick Old Yang.
Now, their family flickered like a candle in the wind.
Not knowing what to say in the face of this, Xiao He forced a smile as he spoke slowly to Old Yangâs wife, âSister-in-law, itâs nothing serious, no need to worry. Itâs like a small nick, really. You go outside and rest awhile, I need to talk to Little Yang about something.â
Seeing the situation, Little Yang also understood what was going on, âMom, you go outside with Cui Er and take care of the kids. Iâll come find you in a bit.â
Old Yangâs wife nodded, half believing, uncertain whether she truly believed or if there was any alternative to disbelief. With a sigh, she slowly left the endoscopy room.
Watching his mother leave, Little Yang took a deep breath, knowing all too well that things werenât as simple as Xiao He had made them out to be.
As simple as a small nickâ¦
If only it were that simple.
At this thought, a heavy weight settled in Little Yangâs heart, and he couldnât help but sighâ¦
He tried to appear stronger as he spoke, âDirector Xiao, please tell me straight, whatever it is.â
Xiao He nodded, âOld Yang has an esophageal perforation, a rather rare type of esophageal injury. Such cases are unusual, but they have been on the rise in recent years, in part due to long-term endoscopic examinations. The constant dilation of the esophagus has thinned its walls. When I was performing the endoscopy just now, I could already see the changes in the esophageal wall and a wound had appeared. I scarcely touched Old Yangâs injury, and he twisted in pain, and then the probe actually went right through the esophageal wall!â
âSuch cases are not uncommon, accounting for over sixty to seventy percent of esophageal perforations.â
Little Yang nodded, âI understand, I understand. Director Xiao, just tell me what needs to be done.â
This caught Xiao He off guard.
He had expected a dispute over responsibility.
After all, this medically induced perforation, although primarily caused by the patient, carried a degree of doctor liability as well.
But Little Yangâs words left Xiao He somewhat at a loss.
Ahâ¦
With this thought, Xiao He sighed,
âAfter an esophageal perforation, the highly irritating gastric contents and bacteria-laden oral secretions, as well as food, quickly pass through the tear and into the mediastinum, leading to serious mediastinal infection. Moreover, since the mediastinum is made up of loose connective tissue, along with negative pressure and the pulsing of the heart and blood vessels, inflammations can rapidly spread and even erode through the pleura into the chest cavity⦠In short, the consequences are very severe!â
These words plunged Little Yangâs heart into the abyss!
Raising his hand felt like an uphill battle; life was so toughâ¦
âSo⦠what should we do, Director?â Little Yangâs voice trembled with fear, âHow can it be treated?â
Xiao He, âWe caught it early. As long as the surgery is done promptly, the problem shouldnât be too severe. What we need to do now is complete the surgery within 12 hours. After 24 hours, the mortality rate triples!â
âNo problems within that time period, now what we need to do is contact a doctor, we must operate as soon as possible!â
Upon hearing this, Little Yang was dumbfounded. How am I supposed to know which doctor?
âDirector Xiao, could you please help us contact a doctor⦠Iâm just a car washer, I donât know any doctors, where am I supposed to find a doctor within 12 hoursâ¦â
He was just a worker, his words carried little weight. In the vast city of An Yang, he was nothing but an insignificant figure. Where could he go to meet those thoracic surgeons?
Xiao He picked up his phone, flipping through the contacts list, pondering, maybe he should turn to the Provincial Peopleâs Hospital.
As he was about to call an old classmate, his eyes suddenly caught sight of a familiar name!
âEmergency Department â Chen Cang!â
In that moment, Xiao He hesitated. Could Little Chen handle such a surgery?
Xiao Yang suddenly asked, âDirector Xiao, how much does the surgery cost? I⦠need to borrow some money.â
On hearing this question, Xiao He suddenly realized, thatâs right!
Why hadnât he considered this problem!
An esophageal repair surgery costs around ten thousand or more even after medical insurance, doesnât it?
Old Yang had borrowed a lot due to stomach disease, had Xiao Yang and his wife managed to pay it off after all these yearsâ¦
After transferring hospitals, they would need inpatient surgery⦠With all the miscellaneous expenses, plus the surgery costs, there would still be a lot of money to pay after reimbursement. Xiao He suddenly realized that this would undoubtedly be another disaster for the Yang family!
The surgery isnât that expensiveâ¦
Maybe⦠he could try asking Chen Cang?
Xiao He suddenly had a new idea, which was to have Chen Cang perform the surgery.
Itâs like having a friend who wants to have a circumcision and comes to Chen Cang; Chen Cang wouldnât need to arrange a hospital stay or charge any fees. All he asked was that they come when no one else was around, and then he would perform the procedure as if it were just a simple matter.
Thinking of this, Xiao He was somewhat tempted.
First, he would ask Chen Cang if he could do it before deciding!
With this thought, he dialed Chen Cangâs number.
â¦
â¦
After Chen Cang arrived at the endoscopy department, he was taken directly into the office by Xiao He. As soon as he entered, Xiao He got straight to the point and explained the situation!
Xiao He sighed. âActually, the hospital bears some responsibility for this surgery, but as you know, based on the medical affairs departmentâs character, Xiao Yang will not get much compensation. Moreover, such a surgery would require quite a sum of money, potentially tens of thousands back and forth.â
âChen Cang, if you can do this surgery, please help Old Yang. Youâd also be helping me.â
[Ding! Mission triggered: Help Xiao He save Old Yang. Upon completion, you can obtain: 1. A random skill from Xiao He; 2. +10 favorability from Xiao He; 3. +2 skill points.]
Chen Cang hesitated for a moment and then opened his skill tree.
He found [Intrathoracic Esophageal Perforation Repair Surgery].
A level three surgery!
If it cost skill points, it would require a lotâ¦
However, Chen Cang suddenly remembered that after his job transfer was successful, he could acquire a free purple skill.
With that in mind, Chen Cang chose to learn!
Immediately, everything before Chen Cang changed.
He found himself in the operating room of a virtual space.
He began to learn the esophageal repair surgery.
Upon completing the task, he would obtain a random skill from Xiao He and two additional skill points, which Chen Cang found to be quite a good deal.
Moreover, the most important thing was that esophageal repair is a critical and emergency clinical condition.
Iatrogenic injuries may be unfamiliar to many, but the other two are certainly not!
One is traumatic injuries, like those from knives, bullets, or blunt force, all of which can cause damage to the esophagus.
The last one is from everyday life, such as perforation due to foreign objectsâfish bones, chicken bones, dentures, and the like.
Therefore, learning this skill is very practical!