The Enhanced Doctor-Chapter 524 Autopsies, Searching for the Truth

Losing a loved one is painful, particularly when it comes as a sudden shock.

However, for the family of this patient, they chose to let go after seeking advice from all sides.

"Dr. Wang, I apologize sincerely. I lost my sanity at that time," the patient’s son said, having sought out Wang Chao.

"Ah... it’s fine for me, as long as you can accept the outcome," Wang Chao sighed.

"I also heard from Dr. Liu that it was a cerebral hemorrhage. I’ve been thinking back on the admission process; it seems your father showed no signs of head discomfort, only a strong smell of alcohol," he added.

"Now I also tend to agree with Dr. Liu’s judgment. It’s likely a brain aneurysm that caused this. Whether it’s congenital or acquired, it’s hard to say right now."

"If you still have doubts, you can request an autopsy from our hospital. After all, everything now is just a suspicion." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Hearing Wang Chao’s words, Liu Banxia, who was accompanying him, was taken aback. This was getting rather emotional.

After all, a dispute had just occurred and had barely settled down. Yet, the doctor who had attended to the patient was now advocating for an autopsy, which went against "common sense."

However, Liu Banxia could understand. This patient was the most special one for Wang Chao. A lingering concern had taken root in Wang Chao’s heart, and he felt compelled to get to the bottom of it.

"Dr. Wang, can... can we find out?" The patient’s son hesitated.

"If it’s decided, I will lead a team to perform it," Liu Banxia said.

"I’ll discuss it with my mom. We also think my dad passed away too mysteriously," the patient’s son said.

After saying this, he went to discuss the matter with his family.

In foreign countries, an autopsy might not be a big deal. It was different in China, however, where many people are particular about such things.

An autopsy would indeed cause some damage to the body. Even as the son of the deceased, he dared not decide on such a matter alone.

"Chao, you were impulsive," Liu Banxia said, patting Wang Chao’s shoulder.

"President Liu, I know what you’re going to say, but I don’t want to let it pass so vaguely," Wang Chao said with a bitter smile.

"We know it has nothing to do with us, but others don’t. Word may spread and turn into something else. Perhaps the story will become that the patient’s family couldn’t stand the pressure, so they withdrew the complaint."

"Then what would I become? Still the doctor who killed the patient? If I don’t clear this up, I can’t get over this hurdle myself. I became a doctor to save people, not to harm them."

Liu Banxia looked at him and nodded. His mood was as expected. After a slight hesitation, Liu Banxia found Zhou Shuwen and relayed the matter.

"In that case, if the patient’s family also believes an autopsy is necessary, then waive the fee for this part. It can officially be treated as an instructional operation for your interns," Zhou Shuwen said after a slight hesitation.

"Alright, let’s see what the patient’s family chooses. Otherwise, Wang Chao will keep dwelling on this," Liu Banxia said.

"Besides, he needs some counseling. This kid is quite capable; it’d be a shame if he were relegated to a second-tier role," Zhou Shuwen said.

"Don’t worry, he won’t back out that easily," Liu Banxia said with a smile.

Outside in the corridor, Liu Banxia updated Wang Chao on the situation, leaving the rest for Wang Chao to communicate with the family. Whether or not to proceed was their decision; the hospital had offered all the help it could. This was all done for Wang Chao’s sake.

After about twenty minutes of waiting, the patient’s son gave a definite answer: do the autopsy.

"You all, come with me. Opportunities to observe autopsies in medical school aren’t plentiful. This one was secured for you by Wang Chao," Liu Banxia said to the interns.

"You will perform the autopsy later, and I will supervise. However, this autopsy deviates from the norm. The factors leading to the patient’s death are already indicated, so it won’t involve a full pathological dissection."

The interns nodded.

Even if it wasn’t a full autopsy, they would at least open the skull to determine if a cerebral hemorrhage caused the death. This was a rare experience for them; usually, only neurosurgeons performed craniotomies.

Not just Xu Yino and her team, but all available interns at the Emergency Center were there to learn.

As Liu Banxia had said, even in medical school, cadavers for educational purposes were not that plentiful. For them, this was indeed a precious experience.

"Tell me as soon as you find anything out," Wang Chao said, coming over.

"Don’t worry. We’re doing all this for you. Don’t let the director’s consideration go to waste," Liu Banxia said.

Wang Chao gave a wry smile and nodded.

"Jiang Yuanyi, Cui Li, you’re both neurosurgery interns. You have some experience from observing surgeries. This opportunity will be given to those who haven’t had much exposure," Liu Banxia said after they reached the anatomy room.

"Teacher Liu, we’re okay with that," Jiang Yuanyi said with a smile.

"Alright then. Li Hao, it’s your turn," Liu Banxia nodded.

Li Hao was a bit nervous.

Even though this was a cadaver dissection, he worried he might cut too deep with the bone saw and damage the brain tissue. He had only observed this procedure during medical school. Now, he was just nervous.

It took a bit longer than expected, but once the cranium was finally opened, Li Hao breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, I didn’t embarrass Teacher Liu this time. For some reason, that was the only thing on his mind at that moment.

"Ah... so much blood. It’s definitely a cerebral hemorrhage. Cui Li, try to find out if there’s an aneurysm," Liu Banxia sighed, assessing the intracranial situation.

Cui Li nodded and leaned over the dissection table to search carefully. The others weren’t idle either; this was a chance for them to closely observe the brain’s structure.

"Teacher Liu, it is indeed a ruptured aneurysm," Cui Li confirmed after a moment.

An aneurysm is a bulge on a blood vessel that stretches the vessel wall, so a ruptured aneurysm is very different from a torn blood vessel.

"Keep looking," Liu Banxia said concisely.

Cui Li was stunned for a moment. Why? We’ve already found the ruptured aneurysm. What else is there to look for?

"We should check more thoroughly. Please remove all these blood clots," Xu Yino, by Cui Li’s side, quietly suggested.

This, too, could be considered a sign of their developing rapport. Jiang Yuanyi and Cui Li, having always interned under Zhang Xiao and Xiao Jun, weren’t familiar with Liu Banxia’s methods.

"Oh! Teacher Liu, there’s another aneurysm! No... not one, but two! The blood clots obscured them earlier," Cui Li exclaimed in surprise after examining further.

Liu Banxia frowned and also leaned in to look.

It was just as Cui Li had said. Once the blood clots were removed, two more small protrusions on the blood vessel became clearly visible.

"Why does this patient have so many aneurysms? That’s quite rare, isn’t it?" Xu Yino asked.

Liu Banxia nodded. "It is indeed rare. It could potentially be caused by a tumor. Let’s also inspect the abdominal organs. Make a Y-shaped incision. Huang Bo, you’re up."

This situation was clearly abnormal. Liu Banxia thought, The only thing I can do now is continue searching for the ’truth.’ These multiple cerebral aneurysms might just be a complication of some underlying disease.

"Teacher Liu, what do you think could be the cause?" Liu Yiqing approached Liu Banxia.

"How would I know? I’m not an MRI machine," Liu Banxia said helplessly.

"So, today’s case serves as a reminder to us all: always be thorough in your work. You two, in particular, should take note. Of course, this isn’t criticism, but a reminder."

"Regarding the cause of death, we can now give the patient’s family an answer. However, if we were to rate our thoroughness so far, it would only be about 30% complete."

"However, we must remember that during a clinical autopsy, our task differs from that of a forensic pathologist. After opening the body, we conduct an initial exploration. It’s best not to remove organs unless absolutely necessary."

"Thank you, Teacher Liu. I won’t make such a mistake again. Perhaps... I could treat everyone to chicken legs for dinner tonight?" Cui Li asked tentatively.

"That’s quite a lot of people. Are you sure you want to join the ’chicken leg contribution’ club?" Liu Banxia teased.

"I have to. Today’s lesson will make me take things more seriously in the future," Cui Li said earnestly.

Liu Banxia shrugged. "Alright then. It’s been a while since I’ve had chicken legs; lately, it’s been all pork trotters. Miao Rui, you can delay those trotters you owe me."

Miao Rui nodded. "I’m already prepared. Who knows how many pork trotters I’ll have to contribute in the coming months? I’m just worried you’ll get sick of them."

Listening to Miao Rui’s words, the interns from other departments couldn’t help feeling a bit envious of Liu Banxia’s teaching atmosphere.

The six from the General Surgery Department, and even Liang Xiaolin, were becoming quite famous, not only in the Emergency Center but throughout the entire Second Hospital.

Their skills and rapid development had essentially turned them into the proverbial "other people’s kids"—the ones everyone is compared to.

If the six could hear their thoughts, they would definitely tell them: Wake up! It’s all an illusion. That’s Demon Lord Liu disguised in sheep’s clothing; he’s really a big bad wolf! We live in constant trepidation! Moments of joy are fleeting; torment is an everyday affair!

"Teacher Liu, we can conclude the case now. Polycystic kidney disease. Multiple cysts are visible on both kidneys."

At this point, Huang Bo had also finished his task, completing the initial exploration.

In the area Huang Bo had exposed, both kidneys were visible, and indeed, numerous cysts were present on them.

This was it. This was the true cause of the patient’s death. The truth.