Ni Xiaona’s father was in so much pain that he couldn’t support himself anymore. Seeing that he was about to fall, Jiang Tingxu had caught him. Liao Jiayu, who was outside of the ward, had also rushed in to lend a hand. “Could someone help us out? We need to get him on the bed.”
The family members of the patients who were still outside the door rushed in to help as soon as they heard Liao Jiayu’s words. And soon, Ni Xiaona’s father was laid down on the hospital bed.
Jiang Tingxu had already started a preliminary examination using her stethoscope. “Mr. Ni, what’s wrong? Does your stomach hurt?”
“No… it’s not my stomach… It’s my heart.”
His heart?
Upon hearing this word, not only did the hearts of Jiang Tingxu and Liao Jiayu tightened, even the others in the ward couldn’t help but shiver.
Jiang Tingxu had specialized in thoracic, so she could make a rough assumption. She regained her composure and asked, “Mr. Ni, how would you describe the pain?”
There were many types of heart-related chest pain. Causes and treatments would vary depending on the location and accompanying symptoms.
Ni Xiaona’s father was in unbearable pain that he had to close his eyes. He gritted his teeth, and the veins on his face had bulged out. “It hurts a lot… as if my chest was being torn apart.”
Jiang Tingxu’s face had turned white. Without hesitation, she quickly ordered the nurses, “I need oxygen—oxygen flow at 2 liters per minute. Prepare for electrocardiogram monitoring and establish venous access. Get the operating room ready. I need 1,200 c.c. of blood from the blood bank. Get the others for a thoracic consultation.”
She had given so many orders at once. But the nurses in the emergency department had coped with it.
“You go and inform them, Ms. Bai.”
“Alright, I’ll go right away.”
The remaining Qiao Ran and Cao Jing had split up their work. One of them was on oxygen and monitoring. The other hurriedly pushed a cart over to prepare for venous access.
Jiang Tingxu’s forehead was covered in sweat, and Liao Jiayu was about the same. “The patient has aortic dissection,” he confirmed.
Jiang Tingxu nodded in agreement. “Mhm.”
When two doctors had come to the same diagnosis, they were mostly 99% accurate.
Ni Xiaona’s mother had heard this, and she had felt lightheaded. “Is this… is this very serious?”
It didn’t sound like a minor condition. Seeing Dr. Jiang in such a hurry to order the operating room to prepare, she had understood the seriousness of her husband’s situation. Even if she had no idea what aortic dissection was.
As the most critical and complicated disease in the department of cardiothoracic surgery, the high mortality rate of an aortic dissection gave it the title of ‘The Silent Killer’.
Liao Jiayu could not bear to see her worried. Now that the situation was critical, he had no choice but to explain it to his family. “Yes, in Mr. Ni’s current situation, the possibility of aortic dissection is very high. Here is a simple example. Our human heart act as the engine, and now that the lining of the aorta is torn, it is equivalent to the pump exploding. As the aorta is the body’s largest artery, it is responsible for providing blood and oxygen to all important organs. Its rupture had meant it is a grave situation. We need to open up the chest immediately to stop the bleeding. Otherwise, even God wouldn’t be able to save him.”
Liao Jiayu’s explanation was very straightforward and easily understandable. Ni Xiaona’s mother had fainted for real this time.
“Mom! Mom!”
It was a fortune that she had only blacked out for a few seconds before she came to her senses. She quickly grabbed Liao Jiayu’s hand. “You have to save my husband, doctor. Please, save him!”
Ni Xiaona endured the pain from her wound and got off the bed. She had almost knelt down. “Dr. Jiang, Dr. Liao, I beg you. Please save my father!”
Jiang Tingxu swiftly grabbed Ni Xiaona. “We will do our best to save him. You shouldn’t get out of bed right now. You have to lie down.”