CHAPTER 55: CHAPTER 55: EMERGENCY TRACHEOTOMY?

With a few quick steps toward the direction of the shouting, Zhao Heng saw many people forming a circle ahead, and in the center of the crowd on the ground, a middle-aged, corpulent woman was holding a chubby child, helplessly shouting.

Upon closer look, the chubby child in the woman’s arms was clutching his throat, pale-faced and lips bluish, constantly making "hiss hiss" sounds, his legs kicking wildly.

"Help!"

"My little treasure!"

The middle-aged, corpulent woman clutched the chubby child, shaking him and crying out desperately.

"What’s going on?!"

"I don’t know, suddenly, he couldn’t breathe!"

"Look, his neck’s getting thicker; he’s probably going to suffocate!"

The crowd kept making noisy comments.

"Everyone, disperse!"

Zhao Heng glanced at the onlookers and shouted loudly.

After speaking, Zhao Heng squatted down and gently said to the middle-aged woman, who seemed lost and dazed, "I’m a doctor from Eastern Hospital. Let me take a look at the child."

"You’re a doctor?"

Upon hearing Zhao Heng’s statement, the woman looked at him as if he were a lifeline, with a look of one rescued from drowning, as if he were the savior.

"Yes, let me see the child."

Zhao Heng repeated.

In such a stressful state, people’s reactions differ from those of normal people, so Zhao Heng needed to remind her repeatedly at this moment.

"Okay, okay, doctor, you must save my baby, I’m begging you!"

The woman continuously murmured as she reluctantly handed the chubby child to Zhao Heng.

"Don’t worry, I will definitely save your child! Relax, take a deep breath!"

As Zhao Heng took the chubby child, he comforted the woman because he noticed she was overly emotional, pale-faced, looking as if she was about to run out of breath.

Zhao Heng knew he also had to calm her down at this moment; otherwise, if she fell ill too, there would be one more person to save, and it would turn chaotic.

Shu Xin, who followed Zhao Heng, heard what Zhao Heng said to the woman, and noticed her panting heavily, pale-faced appearance; she realized the woman was triggered into distress, which could easily lead to a myocardial infarction.

Therefore, the sharp-witted Shu Xin squatted down and gently patted the woman’s back continuously, comforting her, "Come on, deep breath, don’t be nervous, Senior is a doctor at Eastern Hospital, your child will be okay."

Meanwhile, Zhao Heng noticed the chubby child’s eyes had rolled back, and upon checking his nostrils, his breathing was extremely weak.

Moreover, the chubby child was still making "hiss hiss" sounds; the reason for this sound is due to severe laryngeal edema, causing significant airway obstruction, so airflow couldn’t pass through the trachea properly, resulting in the "hiss hiss" sound.

Zhao Heng carefully placed the chubby child on the ground, opened his clothing, and saw there was no movement in the chest, and there was clear indentation at the suprasternal notch, supraclavicular recess, and intercostal space, while his neck had swollen red.

Seeing such obvious signs, Zhao Heng immediately determined that the chubby child had severe laryngeal edema and urgently needed a tracheotomy; otherwise, it would be too late to rush him to the hospital, and he would die from severe asphyxia and hypoxia!

However, this was not in a hospital, and there were no professional tools for a tracheotomy.

Zhao Heng turned his head, looked around, and suddenly saw a young man in blue work clothes.

"Do you have an emergency kit?"

Zhao Heng didn’t have time to ask more, he directly asked the young man.

"Yes, yes, I’ll get it, doctor, what else do you need?"

The young man was seeing such a scene for the first time, also somewhat panic-stricken; Zhao Heng’s question made him feel grounded, and he responded immediately.

"Fruit knife, alcohol, short tube, do you have these?"

Zhao Heng hurriedly asked.

"Yes, yes, I’ll get them right away."

The young man nodded hurriedly and ran towards the workplace.

"What’s happening now?"

"I think it’s dubious; look, he’s already not breathing, might not make it to the hospital!"

"Poor thing, this kid!"

The crowd continued with noisy exclamations.

Shortly, the young man returned breathless, carrying an emergency kit in his left hand, a fruit knife, and a milk tea straw in his right hand.

"Doctor, no short tube, just this unused milk tea straw, would that work?"

The young man squatted down, handed the items to Zhao Heng, and asked anxiously.

"Yes, that’ll do."

Zhao Heng nodded; the type of tube didn’t matter, as long as it could maintain ventilation.

"That’s great, that’s great."

The young man nodded repeatedly.

"The child is suffocating; I need to cut open his trachea to restore ventilation."

Zhao Heng said urgently to the middle-aged woman.

The woman, already comforted by Shu Xin, turned pale and felt lost hearing Zhao Heng’s words.

"This is the only way; otherwise, he won’t make it to the hospital."

Zhao Heng asserted to the middle-aged woman.

This was a necessary step; without obtaining her consent, cutting open someone’s neck with a fruit knife on the street would be criminal!

"Doctor, go ahead! I trust you!"

Perhaps at a critical moment, something was triggered in the woman’s heart, causing her to suddenly become calm and resolve as she spoke to Zhao Heng.

There’s a saying, a mother’s strength; when something happens to her child, any mother becomes a remarkably strong warrior!

"Alright."

Zhao Heng nodded.

"You hold his head steady, tilt it back slightly."

Zhao Heng instructed Shu Xin.

"Got it, Senior."

Shu Xin nodded firmly, took a deep breath, as if she had been given a major task.

Zhao Heng also took a deep breath; as an anesthesiologist, mastering tracheotomy was a crucial emergency skill.

But performing a tracheotomy outside the hospital, on a bustling street, was a first!

Zhao Heng first picked up the alcohol, unscrewed the cap, poured half a bottle on the child’s neck.

Then, Zhao Heng picked up the fruit knife, pouring the remaining half bottle of alcohol on it, disinfecting his hand holding the knife as well.

Though it seemed reckless, it was effective disinfection.

Seeing Zhao Heng’s actions, the crowd suddenly became agitated.

"What’s he doing?!"

"Is he really going to cut open the neck?!"

"Ah! Too gruesome!"

Furthermore, among the onlookers, someone raised a phone, aimed the camera at Zhao Heng and the chubby child.

Watching drama is human instinct!