Chapter 1394: Learning Never Stops

Chapter 1394: Chapter 1394: Learning Never Stops

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"Doctor, how serious is my condition?"

The patient asked anxiously.

"You might need surgery, and it involves two lesions, one in the esophagus, and one in the lungs. This is no longer gastroesophageal reflux; it is likely an esophageal hiatus hernia." Liu Banxia explained.

"There are two causes. One is congenital, and the other is acquired. What does it mean? It means that the organs in the abdominal cavity have entered the thoracic cavity through the enlarged esophageal hiatus."

"The most fundamental symptoms are reflux, heartburn, belching, and nausea. The most representative symptom is what you just mentioned, lying there and being easily nauseated upon pressing."

"Based on your current symptoms, it’s more likely to be a sliding esophageal hiatus hernia. However, this can only be confirmed after detailed examination tomorrow."

"Doctor, it’s not cancer, right?" The patient let out a sigh of relief.

"It’s not cancer, but don’t think you can relax just because it’s not. Do you know how your lungs and trachea got inflamed? It’s because food refluxed accidentally into the trachea, causing inflammation." Liu Banxia said.

"Moreover, your symptoms are already quite apparent, and it’s possible that the hiatus isn’t small. Fast eating, overeating, prolonged sitting, heavy drinking, smoking, and other bad lifestyle habits can easily lead to this condition."

"Since you previously had a history of gastroesophageal reflux, the tendency is even greater. Don’t worry, once we ascertain your condition, we’ll perform endoscopic surgery."

"It’s what you commonly call minimally invasive surgery, making incisions in the body and placing the organs back where they should be. Then repair the hiatus to its normal size, and it won’t be a problem."

"Doctor, could it really be this condition?" The patient asked hesitantly.

Liu Banxia chuckled, "It’s pretty much certain, and from your current situation, it seems you’ve had it for quite a while, but it didn’t show prominently and was mistaken for gastroesophageal reflux."

"Can we do a gastroscopy right now? I’m feeling unsure." The patient said.

"Not now; you’re not having an upper gastrointestinal bleed requiring immediate hemostatic surgery. Rest assured, even if you go home today, come early tomorrow, and aim to be first in line." Liu Banxia replied.

"To keep things simple, you can directly admit to the hospital. Although we haven’t conducted a detailed examination yet, it’s essentially a done deal. Just think about it: organs from the abdominal cavity have moved to the chest cavity, do you expect your stomach to chat with your heart and lungs?"

"They’ve taken their place, how can the lungs breathe or the heart bounce? The more the hiatus stretches, the bigger it gets, and the more it affects the body. Don’t worry, I wouldn’t scare you just to get you into surgery."

"Uh, can I make a call? I need to discuss it with my wife." The patient said.

"Of course you can, and you must do so. You shouldn’t handle this alone." Liu Banxia nodded with a smile.

Seeing Liu Banxia’s relaxed expression, the patient’s mood eased somewhat too.

"Wow...I really don’t know what conditions could escape your attention." Qi Wentai remarked with admiration.

"Those female workers from the electronics factory earlier, plus the one with the esophageal hiatus hernia just now, are really hard to diagnose. They can easily be confused with gastroesophageal reflux, even during a gastroscopy if not careful, it’s tough to see."

"In the past, such conditions were less common because people liked to exercise and didn’t live as well as they do now." Liu Banxia said.

"But now it’s not the same; obesity has become standard. Indulgence in rich foods, irregular routines, and frequent consumption of hotpot, these easily damage the esophagus and can trigger an esophageal hiatus hernia."

"But as you mentioned, this condition is often confused with gastroesophageal reflux. Even our current patient might have been misdiagnosed."

"But we can’t say that out loud; it’d undermine our colleagues. Moreover, being slightly inattentive during a gastroscopy may not reveal the condition."

"Many people focus only on whether there’s an organic lesion, so they don’t accurately grasp minor symptoms. With symptoms like nausea and vomiting, especially pressure-induced vomiting, the first thought should be this condition."

"Got it? Don’t head right to bed after eating instant noodles; give your stomach a chance to handle the food properly or this condition might occur, you need to be careful."

Hearing his words, Xu Yino felt a bit helpless.

The Big Shaman is acting mischievous again, teasing people.

"Frankly, this condition used to require major surgery. It was a routine thoracoabdominal joint surgery and couldn’t be handled otherwise." Liu Banxia continued.

"But the situation is much better now; with the involvement of an endoscope, it’s just a medium-scale surgery. The key point during hiatus repair is tailoring it to the patient’s condition."

"Reporting to Teacher Liu, since I’ve encountered this, I’ve essentially participated. Can I assist in the surgery?" Xu Yino raised their hand.

"Well done, young comrade, it’s worth considering. But don’t slack off; review the surgical approach and even study how to restore the anatomical structure." Liu Banxia reminded.

"Even if you haven’t performed this surgery before, I know how it’s done. What about the rest of you? I’ll be asking questions on the spot, you need to stay alert."

Hearing his words, Xu Yino and the others felt a sudden tension. When the Big Shaman gets mischievous, there’s no limit, and you never know how far he’ll go.

This surgery may be unfamiliar, but that’s no excuse for not understanding it.

It wasn’t an emergency surgery, you had plenty of preparation time, what did you do?

But just because he’s on this surgery doesn’t mean the questions he’ll ask are about this. That guy may not even give you a hint where it’s going, you have to be careful.

"Doctor, my wife said we should be admitted first. But we don’t have all the money right now, can we pay the deposit for the surgery tomorrow?" The patient walked over at this moment.

"Yes, that’s fine. There’s no rush. Tomorrow, we’ll first conduct endoscopy exams; start fasting now. Then, based on the test results, we’ll discuss further." Liu Banxia nodded.

"If confirmed, we can do the surgery the day after tomorrow. It’ll make things easier for you, and we can discuss the related details tomorrow."

"Right now, just complete the admission procedures, have a good sleep in the ward, and prepare for the battle tomorrow. Don’t worry, the surgery isn’t difficult."

The patient nodded and went to complete the procedures.

"Seems like there’s nothing much happening tonight, you all can just wash up and get some sleep." Liu Banxia stretched lazily.

"Teacher Liu, aren’t you going to rest?" Liu Yiqing asked.

"I still have to wait for the situation in the operation room; let’s see how things are going." Liu Banxia replied.

"Then let’s wait a bit as well; it’s important to have a proper closing." Xu Yino said.

"Haha, I think you’re just worried the food in your stomach hasn’t digested yet." Liu Banxia said with a smile.

"It’s all the same, children of the martial world shouldn’t worry about so much." Xu Yino said.

Everyone laughed.

Now it’s an official resting period, and they just witnessed Liu Banxia’s amazing skills again.

Simply relying on a symptom supplemented by the patient to diagnose the condition, it’s truly impressive.

What does this represent then? It indicates that Liu Banxia’s usual expertise covers a wide range.

Esophageal hiatus hernia, for many people, is only something heard of, never actually seen. Just like the recent patient, he could be considered the first in the emergency center.

The reason is simple, this disease is easily misdiagnosed as gastroesophageal reflux. Even Liu Banxia initially diagnosed it as gastroesophageal reflux.

Then, relying on the patient’s supplementary information, he solved the problem.

This incident reflects another issue that Liu Banxia often mentions, which is the need to ask patients for more information.

No matter if the patient thinks the information is useful, it needs to be provided for the doctor to make a judgment.

In a hypothetical situation, where the patient directly states this symptom, perhaps there wouldn’t be so much hassle, and a detailed symptomatic examination could be done right away tomorrow morning.

Among the many patients Liu Banxia has diagnosed, many conditions have been resolved through supplementary information given by the patient. So this issue needs thorough attention, not carelessness.

Maybe the next patient diagnosed by him will need the discovery of issues through their clinical and symptom description.

Medicine is a vast discipline, one that requires continuous learning.

Though Liu Banxia didn’t give them a lecture today, through the diagnostic process of this patient, he taught them a lesson.

These things are topics Liu Banxia frequently talks about, but for them now, they’ve somewhat forgotten.

After waiting a bit, Liang Xiaolin emerged from the elevator, "The patient has been sent to ICU, and we’ve communicated with the family."

"Is it serious?" Liu Banxia asked.

"It’s manageable; our rescue efforts were timely enough." Liang Xiaolin replied.

"Li Hao, how’s the abdominal situation?" Liu Banxia continued asking.

"All sorted." Li Hao said cheerfully.

"That’s not bad. Alright, I’ll monitor here for a while, you all go rest. If there’s nothing going on, I might take a nap and then head to sleep." Liu Banxia nodded.

Now there’s genuine peace of mind, although today was truly busy, the outcomes were positive.

At least among today’s patients, there were no fatalities, which counts as success.

Even if a surgeon gets used to death, can one truly adapt? It’s just a façade of words. One will still feel impacted by failed rescues among treated patients.

This is where emergency doctors are harsher compared to other specialties.