CHAPTER 466: HAS THE THYROID FUNCTION DECREASED AGAIN AT 466?

"Teacher Liu, there weren’t any problems with my consultation just now, were there?" Xu Yino asked anxiously after the patient was sent to the operating room.

Liu Banxia nodded. "You handled it very appropriately and methodically. The patient appears to have developed delayed bleeding, which is something no one could have anticipated."

"Don’t let it affect you. Carry on with high spirits to meet the next patient. Also, next time I’m assisting, just call me Dr. Liu. No need to call me Teacher Liu."

"Teacher Liu, then... then how do you think his condition will turn out?" Xu Yino continued to ask.

"Who can predict such things? We’ll have to see if the operation is successful and check for any brain damage during postoperative recovery. Remember our other patient? Didn’t the injury affect his language center?" Liu Banxia said.

Xu Yino nodded. She had actually been hoping to hear a positive prognosis. However, she also knew that in such situations, no one could truly be sure of the outcome.

Perhaps even the heavens felt that Liu Banxia had suffered enough today. Although two more emergency patients were brought in before dinnertime, their conditions weren’t severe.

This relieved Liu Banxia somewhat.

It was a rather superstitious thought, but it was said that on certain days, the mortality rate among incoming patients could be very high. While largely superstitious, such things did occasionally happen.

Take, for instance, the patient who had been assaulted. Liu Banxia had carefully examined the patient’s head and found no signs of external injury. So, when the patient’s condition suddenly deteriorated, it caught him by surprise.

"My patient is at risk of falling into a vegetative state," Xu Yino said pitifully as they were finishing dinner.

"From what I heard from the police who arrived later, it seems to have been caused by a rivalry over affection, right?" Wang Chao asked.

"Young people these days are too ruthless. I remember when I was young, fights usually ended when someone got a nosebleed," Liu Banxia commented.

"I went to check on that child; he’s doing pretty well now. It seems his father plans to sue the renovators, claiming that the storage cabinet should have been secured to the wall from the inside, but they supposedly forgot to do it," Su Wenhao said.

"This should serve as a reminder to all of you. When you’re renovating your homes or buying furniture in the future, anything movable like that needs to be secured. Little children don’t understand the dangers, and many have been injured by such things," Liu Banxia advised.

"Furthermore, I want to commend Wang Chao and Xu Yino today; your patient reception was very well done. Special praise goes to Liu Yiqing for her meticulousness."

"Although today wasn’t great for the Emergency Center overall, don’t dwell on it; it was just a string of bad luck. At the same time, this proves that our Emergency Center’s current patient volume is truly significant. Everyone, prepare for hard work and long hours."

"Heh heh, as long as Qiaoqiao rewards us with pork trotters, I’m good," Xu Yino said, gnawing on a pig’s trotter.

"Little Xu, shouldn’t you pay a little attention to your image? You’re a beauty, after all," Wang Chao said.

"Why should I pay attention to that? There’s no need, as long as I don’t look like a madwoman," Xu Yino responded indifferently.

Hearing Xu Yino’s words, Liang Xiaolin and Qing Kewa quickly glanced at each other, then nodded very seriously. Actually, they were all pretty much the same. Not disheveled to the point of being unkempt, but definitely weary-looking.

Just then, Liu Banxia’s phone rang. Seeing it was Qiaoqiao, he quickly answered.

"Have you finished eating? Little Tang has a bit of a stomachache," Qiaoqiao said.

"Stomachache? Wait, I’ll be right there." After saying that, he hung up, grabbed the uneaten chicken drumstick from Wang Chao’s plate, and left.

Wang Chao blinked. Forget it; he’s just that domineering. I only got here a bit late and was planning to eat the cauliflower first, then the drumstick.

"What exactly is the situation? Is the pain severe?" Liu Banxia asked after arriving at Tang Feifei’s ward.

"She just said it hurts a little. We were chatting happily after dinner, and then it started hurting," Qiaoqiao said.

"Let me palpate your abdomen first. Did you have a bowel movement today?" Liu Banxia asked.

Tang Feifei nodded.

Liu Banxia checked McBurney’s point; there was no rebound tenderness. He took out his stethoscope and began to auscultate her abdomen.

"How long ago did you finish dinner?" Liu Banxia asked after listening for a while.

"More than an hour ago, I think? We ate early because of the combined scan scheduled for tonight," Qiaoqiao replied.

Liu Banxia’s brow furrowed. "Are there any other sensations?"

"My stomach feels a little bloated, actually. It started before dinner. It should be nothing serious, right?" Tang Feifei asked.

"Put on a mask and go for an abdominal CT. It might be paralytic ileus; I didn’t hear any bowel sounds just now," Liu Banxia said, a spark of excitement in his eyes.

"This could very well be another manifestation of your condition, so don’t delay. If you need to, just cover your head and leave only your eyes showing. I’ll go down with you."

After speaking, Liu Banxia removed his gloves, picked up the chicken leg from the side, and started munching on it heartily. A bold hypothesis was forming in his mind, but it still needed confirmation from the abdominal CT scan.

Tang Feifei had no choice. With her bedwetting issue at stake, she couldn’t afford to worry about anything else. She wrapped her head securely and followed Liu Banxia down to the CT room.

"President Liu, wipe your mouth," Wu Bo said, handing him a napkin as he noticed the corners of Liu Banxia’s mouth were glistening with oil.

"I was called away in the middle of my meal. It’s been a frustrating day, but now it finally feels like there’s a glimmer of hope," Liu Banxia said.

"You can’t afford to be careless now. When they brought the patient for the scan earlier, they were muttering that they didn’t dare speak loudly or even get near you today," Wu Bo said.

"Sigh, I’ve been too affected by my emotions. Heh, look, the stomach, small intestine, and colon all show gaseous distension. That has to be paralytic ileus, right?" Liu Banxia asked.

Wu Bo looked and nodded. "How is it intestinal obstruction again? I puzzled over her head MRI from yesterday for ages. Didn’t the abdominal ultrasound come back clear?"

"That’s why I said there’s hope of figuring out her condition. Sorry for the trouble, Brother Wu, I still need to take her for a blood draw," Liu Banxia said cheerfully.

"Don’t forget to let me know once it’s confirmed!" Wu Bo called out.

Liu Banxia waved his hand in acknowledgment.

They went straight to the first floor for the blood draw. Seeing them like this, the interns also grew quite curious.

"Send it directly for thyroid function tests," Liu Banxia said after the blood was drawn.

"Didn’t Wang Huan say you all finished the tests? Why are you testing again? Oh, was the sample from this morning contaminated?" Xu Hui asked, inching closer.

"The morning results indicated hyperthyroidism. She was fine during the day, but tonight, she developed symptoms of paralytic ileus. Does that ring any bells?" Liu Banxia asked with a grin.

"Yesterday’s ultrasound was clear, yet you’re retesting thyroid function. Hyperthyroidism, paralytic ileus... The thyroid and intestinal obstruction should also... Damn! Could it be hypothyroidism now? Is it that coincidental?" Xu Hui muttered, growing agitated.

"It’s very possible it’s that coincidental. Let’s see the latest test results. If so, we’ll need to adjust her medication," Liu Banxia nodded.

"No, I have to see those test results myself," Xu Hui declared and dashed off towards the lab.

Tang Feifei’s illness was tormenting him. He was the admitting doctor, yet he felt completely helpless.

"Why do I feel so confused?" Xu Yino nudged Liu Yiqing.

"Me too. Could it really be related to the thyroid?" Liu Yiqing also frowned.

"You guys wait down here. I’ll take them back upstairs and grab some fruit to refuel," Liu Banxia said, then led Tang Feifei and Qiaoqiao back to the VIP ward.

He was indeed quite hungry. Eating with abandon in the Emergency Center wasn’t appropriate, and it felt much more comfortable back here.

He flopped onto the sofa without a care for his image. The recent discovery had significantly lightened his mood; it felt as if the entire day’s stress had been vented.

"Looking at this guy now, you should be mostly fine. That’s good," Qiaoqiao said to a nervous Tang Feifei.

Tang Feifei nodded excitedly.

Now, it was just a waiting game. The people on the first floor didn’t disturb Liu Banxia. When new patients arrived, they handled them directly. They knew Liu Banxia had been under immense pressure all day, so they let him focus on this one case.

He was only human, after all. Even if his medical skills were excellent and his surgical abilities formidable, he was still susceptible to emotional turbulence.

Before the test results arrived, Liang Xiaolin, Qing Kewa, Liu Yiqing, and Xu Yino had all quietly gathered there.

"You’re all curious too, huh? Let’s make a bet. I bet this round of tests will show indicators of hypothyroidism," Liu Banxia said with a grin.

"Teacher Liu, what exactly is going on?" Xu Yino asked.

"Let’s not discuss what’s going on just yet; we still need to wait for the test results. We’re doctors; we can’t make baseless speculations. We must rely on test results as evidence," Liu Banxia said seriously.

Now that his mood had improved, he became more talkative. Otherwise, if it were still like he was in the afternoon, he would’ve been too lazy to utter an extra word.

Seeing him like this, those who knew him understood he wouldn’t say more for now. To use a common term, he was "gloating."

Let him gloat for now. At least there was fruit here, and they could seize the opportunity to sneak a little break.

This was quite a skill, huh? They had been sent up by the team downstairs to gather information. Tang Feifei’s condition was so complex; everyone was curious.

"President Liu, I’m thoroughly impressed! Although we haven’t done a tissue biopsy yet, it’s almost certainly Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Her T3 and T4 levels have decreased, and her TSH has increased—clear indicators of hypothyroidism," Xu Hui announced, walking in with the test report.

Hearing this was a big deal. All eyes snapped to Xu Hui, paused for two or three seconds, then swiveled in unison towards Liu Banxia. Things were about to get interesting.