The Enhanced Doctor-Chapter 799: Medicines should not be taken recklessly

"Young man, try to recall more carefully. When you entered his room, did you notice any cold medicine lying around?" Liu Banxia asked after the young man finished speaking.

The young man had just said a lot more, mostly irrelevant to the patient's condition, but speaking seemed to have calmed him down. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Yes... I think I saw Composite Pseudoephedrin Hydrochlorid Tablets? Uh... I also saw a packet of 999 Cold Remedy, and then I don't know anymore," the young man said, pondering carefully.

Liu Banxia nodded. "Alright, you sit aside and rest for now. Considering his current state, he'll likely be declared critical right after he comes back from the CT scan."

"Huh? Doctor, what's wrong with him?" the young man asked, startled.

"It's likely due to taking too much medication. We'll see if we can save him. We'll make a decision after the test results are out and determine if he needs to be transferred to the ICU," Liu Banxia said.

"Doctor, did he try to commit suicide? That can't be right. He usually has a good life, and no one bullies him. He just likes to have a bit too much fun," the young man said, becoming even more agitated.

"In a way, it could be considered suicide. These are the consequences of misusing medication and overdosing. I can't say anything more right now; let's wait for the test results. Sigh..." Liu Banxia finished with a sigh.

The young man was completely bewildered, unable to understand the situation.

Liu Banxia decided to leave him for the time being. This patient's case was something he couldn't handle alone, so he had to go to the Internal Medicine Department, where Wang Huan was on duty today.

"I have a patient with severe jaundice who's been sent for a CT scan. It looks like an overdose of cold medicine," Liu Banxia said.

"Have the blood test and liver function test results come out yet?" Wang Huan asked.

"Not yet, he was just admitted. If it's severe, will he need to go directly to the ICU?" Liu Banxia asked.

"That depends on his condition, but based on your description, it's very likely. How old is he? Is he elderly?" Wang Huan asked curiously.

"Only twenty-five, and that might even be his nominal age," Liu Banxia remarked with a wry smile.

"No way! Someone that age should have some common sense about medication," Wang Huan said, somewhat surprised.

"Who knows? Anyway, the patient's friend said he saw Composite Pseudoephedrin Hydrochlorid Tablets and 999 Cold Remedy. Both of those contain paracetamol. If he really overdosed, especially if his underlying health is poor, his liver won't be able to take it," Liu Banxia said.

"His skin shows signs of jaundice, very severe ones too. Frankly, if you told me he had late-stage liver cancer, I'd almost believe you, except he's not as thin as you'd expect."

"Let's see how severe the damage is first. If it's serious, there might not be much chance of saving him," Wang Huan commented.

"People these days... why don't they read the instructions when taking medicine? They take whatever they want, however they want. Even the healthiest body can't withstand that kind of abuse."

"What about you? Now that they've announced the openings for promotion, you must be feeling pretty confident, right? Anyway, I don't think it'll be a problem for you. I'm just waiting to attend your celebration dinner."

"A celebration dinner? Anytime you want. I realize I owe a lot of meals lately. Old Chen, Zhang Xiao, the Anesthesiology Department, the Operating Room... my goodness, when will I ever be able to pay them all back?" Liu Banxia said helplessly.

"What can you do? You're always doing one surgery after another, completely exhausting everyone," Wang Huan said.

"This new patient, are you transferring him to me, or will he go directly to the ICU? Or will you stay on the case? You need to communicate clearly with the family and prepare them for the worst."

Liu Banxia nodded. "But the family members aren't here right now. We'll see what the test results show in a bit."

This was also a very troublesome issue. The family wasn't present, but they could be contacted. If he really needed to go to the ICU, they would need the family's authorization because of the costs involved.

Besides, if a patient needs to go to the ICU, there's no guarantee they can be saved; it's often just a last-ditch effort.

As new patients were arriving, Liu Banxia didn't take up any more of Wang Huan's consultation time; he still had to wait for the results.

After waiting a little longer, Liu Banxia's phone rang. It was Li Hao.

"Is the CT scan finished?" Liu Banxia asked after answering the call.

"It's done. There were no apparent abnormalities in the liver. The patient has regained consciousness, but he's not in good shape. I asked him, and he said that over the past two days, he'd taken paracetamol, Composite Pseudoephedrin Hydrochlorid Tablets, and 999 Cold Remedy Granules," Li Hao reported quickly.

"Okay, I understand," Liu Banxia said before hanging up.

This was not good news.

"How are your two patients?" he then asked, noticing Qi Wentai and Wang Chao standing nearby.

"One has a dislocated cervical vertebra; traction should be enough to fix it. His chest is fine, but we sent him for a CT scan as well," Wang Chao replied.

"My patient might be more complicated; there's a problem with his lumbar spine. We'll see after the CT scan. What's going on with the patient you just admitted?" Qi Wentai asked.

"He took paracetamol, Composite Pseudoephedrin Hydrochlorid Tablets, and 999 Cold Remedy Granules concurrently. It's likely an overdose," Liu Banxia said.

"This could be serious," Wang Chao said with a frown.

"Exactly. Liu Yiqing, are the blood test results for that last patient back yet?" Liu Banxia asked Liu Yiqing, who had just run back.

"Teacher Liu, the routine blood work doesn't show any obvious abnormalities, and coagulation is normal. However, transaminase and bilirubin levels are significantly elevated, and creatinine and urea nitrogen are also slightly high," Liu Yiqing reported hurriedly.

"Sigh... no need to think too hard about it. It's definitely drug-induced liver damage, already progressing to liver failure, and it's brought on kidney failure too, right?" Liu Banxia asked.

Qi Wentai and Wang Chao nodded.

Actually, just hearing about the three drugs Liu Banxia mentioned, combined with the patient's condition, made the outcome predictable.

These three drugs are common cold medicines found in many homes. Often, even if the names are different, the main active ingredients are the same, and most of them contain paracetamol.

That's its chemical name; the "paracetamol" Liu Banxia mentioned earlier is just another name for this drug.

It's a common household medication, very effective for reducing fever and relieving pain. For headaches, fevers, or a common cold, one or two tablets can make you feel much better.

However, if you overdose on this drug, it can cause severe liver damage. If your underlying health is poor, even a slight overdose can be very dangerous.

Normally, for his symptoms, taking just one of these medications would have been enough. He probably thought taking more types would help him get better faster, and that's what caused the overdose.

"Young man, call his parents. I need to speak with them personally and also get their authorization," Liu Banxia said after finding the patient's friend.

The patient's friend immediately grew tense; he knew what this meant.

"Hello, I am your son's admitting physician and the doctor in charge of his case," Liu Banxia said into the phone.

"Hello, Doctor. We're still on our way; it will take us a while longer to arrive," the patient's father said.

"The initial test results are out. Our diagnosis is liver damage from a recent drug overdose, and he's showing signs of liver and kidney failure," Liu Banxia stated.

"Treat him, Doctor! Please, treat him!" the patient's father exclaimed immediately, before Liu Banxia could continue.

"There are some things we need to explain first. Your son's condition is very serious. We've already issued a critical condition notice; you just weren't here at the time," Liu Banxia said.

"Right now, we can only provide treatment to protect his liver, reduce the jaundice, and manage his symptoms. He needs to be moved to the ICU. We may also need to use artificial liver support with plasma exchange and hemofiltration. These procedures will be quite expensive, and we cannot guarantee a full recovery."

"This means the patient's condition is extremely serious. If you agree for us to proceed, we will use every method available to try and save him. However, the outcome may not be good, and there's a high chance it will fail."

"Doctor, how much will it cost? Will he need a liver or kidney transplant?" the patient's father asked after a moment of silence.

"A liver transplant is one possibility, but it's not very realistic at this stage. Right now, our efforts will focus on supportive care for his liver. If we can protect his liver, his kidney function might recover," Liu Banxia explained.

"However, this process could take some time—a couple of days, three to five days, or even a week or more is possible. Naturally, the costs involved will also be quite high."

This was exactly what Liu Banxia and Wang Huan had been worried about. When a family ends up losing both their loved one and a significant amount of money, conflicts can easily arise.

It's not as if the medical expenses are waived if the rescue attempt fails; that's not how it works. That's why obtaining the family's authorization is crucial. We're not talking about a few hundred or a few thousand yuan here; it could easily be tens of thousands.

Regardless of how cruel it sounded, the decision had to be made by his parents.

"Doctor, save him. We'll borrow money if we have to," the patient's father said with difficulty over the phone.

"Alright, I'll send him to the ICU right now," Liu Banxia said, handing the phone back to the patient's friend.

Now that he had authorization, he could proceed without any problems.

"Send him to the ICU. Do everything possible to save him," Liu Banxia said to Li Hao, who was pushing the patient back on a gurney.

Li Hao nodded and continued pushing the patient toward the ICU.

"Liu Yiqing, contact the ICU. Let's do our best," Liu Banxia added.

Liu Yiqing quickly took out his phone and contacted the ICU ward.

Liu Banxia rubbed his face. Today was not going well. He'd already lost one patient, and the chances of successfully resuscitating this one weren't high either.

"Doctor, is there no chance for him?" the patient's friend asked anxiously.

"We can only say we'll do our utmost. The fact that liver failure has led to kidney failure indicates the liver failure is already very advanced. Otherwise, I wouldn't be sending him to the ICU; liver-protective treatment can also be done in the internal medicine ward," Liu Banxia explained.

"Let's see how he does in the next day or two. If he can pull through, he should be okay. But if his condition continues to worsen, then there's basically no hope left."

The patient's friend opened his mouth as if to say something, but no words came out.

He found it incredibly difficult to accept such an outcome. Just a few days ago, this person was alive and well, and now, all because he took some cold medicine, he was on the verge of death.