Surgery Godfather-Chapter 699 - 624: De-feathering the Immortal

Although patients with metal allergies are relatively rare, Yang Ping has already encountered two cases at Sanbo Hospital.

When he first arrived at Sanbo Hospital, Yang Ping encountered a case of a fourteen-year-old boy who had to undergo surgery for an old fracture of the scaphoid bone on his left side. Two metal screws were inserted, and after the surgery, the boy exhibited multiple symptoms of synovitis in various joints.

The diagnosis was eventually "metal ion reactive arthritis". After the two screws were removed, the symptoms of synovitis in various joints began to decrease gradually.

Technically the two screws in the boy’s body, which didn’t involve metal-on-metal or metal-on-other materials friction, released very few ions. However, allergic reactions are not dose-dependent. Even a trace amount could trigger an allergic reaction.

For example, for people allergic to penicillin, some patients, if they even get a whiff of penicillin, could get anaphylactic shock.

Now this old Sir Wu, allergic to so many metals, this unique case can be written up and published in an article.

When Zhang Lin and Little Five heard that the patient transferred had a metal allergy, they immediately checked his medical history in advance. The patient had been allergic to metals for many years which surprised them; they regarded the case as a treasure trove.

Such unique case reports likely would not interest Song Zimo and Xu Zhiliang; they were involved in significant research with the Professor. On the other hand, Zhang Lin and Little Five could use this case to write an article as first authors, then select a good journal for publication.

Usually, when the department publishes papers, their names always follow; thus, the two strived to make a difference. Relying solely on the monographs they had studied was not enough to establish an academic position, which is why they were attempting to work on these case reports.

They, in essence, needed to pick the stuff that Song Zimo and Xu Zhiliang weren’t interested in writing about.

After dinner, Yang Ping and Xiao Su went to play tennis.

Song Zimo, Xu Zhiliang, August, and Robert all went to the hospital’s library to read books and look up material.

The Sanbo Hospital library was impressive, with virtually no shortage of medical monographs or journals. Moreover, it was open from 8 o’clock in the morning to 10 o’clock at night, with no break in between, making it extremely convenient for reading and researching. It also operated as usual on Saturdays and Sundays.

The four ran into Director Gao in the library, who was engrossed in a book and would occasionally take notes.

Song Zimo often ran into Director Gao in the library. Seeing him immersed in reading, he didn’t greet him.

At first, Song Zimo disliked Director Gao, deeming him thick-skinned and believed that he only pretended to be diligent in his studies. The director’s ardent attention towards Professor Yang also irritated him somewhat. But later, he realized that Gao was sincere in his dedication to learning.

The four remained in the library until it closed. Song Zimo had reviewed a copious amount of material in an attempt to understand how to manage severe knee arthritis in metal allergy patients.

However, there were very few papers on this aspect, probably because most doctors would abandon joint arthroplasty when facing patients with severe metal ion allergies.

———

The MRI scan for old Sir Wu was scheduled for the following afternoon.

Yang Ping made time to personally participate in the MRI examination. He specialized in understanding joint cartilage MRI and standard joint MRI. During the examination, both the parameter settings and the technical application differed greatly. Some special techniques were needed for observing and evaluating the cartilage, and sometimes even quantitative evaluation was required.

To tailor the treatment to each patient, familiarity with the patient’s condition, comprehensive and in-depth knowledge of relevant medical information, and rich experience in treating such diseases are indispensable.

Old Du in the Radiology Department, real name Du Haibin, was a chief physician in his thirties. He was somewhat overweight, particularly his beer belly, and mature, giving off the air of a director, which led everyone to affectionately call him Old Du.

Upon hearing that Yang Ping was coming to the MRI room, Old Du immediately dropped all his work; he had been wanting to establish a connection with Yang Ping.

Everyone in the hospital knew about Yang Ping’s fame, and there were many rumors about him.

It was said that Director Gao was an adjunct trainee in the Comprehensive Surgery Department, who was Yang Ping’s disciple. After learning some valuable skills, he had made the Sports Medicine Centre very popular, rivaling the Sports Medicine Center of the Affiliated First Hospital.

Duan Bald of the Gamma Knife Department had also learned some skills from Yang Ping. The Sanbo stock guru, who lost money year after year, had transformed into a uterine fibroid specialist. His fame was on the rise, and it was said that the city’s gamma-knife surgeries below three thousand were no longer performed. Every hospital with a Gamma Knife facility begged Duan Bald to join them, and the Gamma Knife company also highly valued Duan Bald, using him as a gold medal chief surgeon for promotion, helping him schedule surgeries everywhere.

Stutter Xu from the Emergency Department, ever since joining the Comprehensive Surgery Department, had made significant strides in his professional skills. He started to perform surgeries for scoliosis and even got a beautiful civil servant girlfriend.

Old Du was intrigued and had been waiting for a while in the MRI room.

From time to time, Old Du would go out and ask the nurse, "Has the Comprehensive Surgery Department’s patient arrived yet?"

"They’re here!" The nurse was quite busy and pointed at the old man sitting in a wheelchair in the hall.

Not far away, Professor Yang and his team were walking towards them.

Old Du quickly went forward to greet them. From a distance, he extended his hand, "Welcome."

"Iron Du, are you working in the MRI room today?" Song Zimo asked.

"Today’s my day off. But I heard that Professor Yang was coming to the MRI room, so I specifically came over to see if I could help." Old Du was actually off today, but given such opportunities are rare, he decided to show up despite his day off.

If he could learn even a little from Yang Ping like Duan Bald, maybe he could also be asked to read film.

In actual fact, medical science covers a wide range, anything, if studied deeply in a small field, could enable one to become an expert.

A Radiology expert specialized in the CT imaging of lung nodules; he had examined more than a hundred thousand CT scans of various lung nodules and published hundreds of papers. Patients with lung nodules from all over the country ran to him to read their film, and he could diagnose with confidence. Some who suspected of having lung cancer and needed surgery, the expert took a quick look, confirming that there was no need for surgery, assuredly it was not lung cancer.