Plague Doctor

Chapter 339: PEEK Polymer

It was local time, September 18th 2021 when the international joint unit reappeared at Isla Salas y Gomez. At 18:12 of the same afternoon, the rescue team started the ECMO surgery on Gu Jun; his heart regained function at 18:37. His EF, or Ejection Fraction, a measurement of how much blood the left ventricle pumps out with each contraction, stayed a dangerously low 10 percent for the standard value is at 50 to 70 percent. Due to massive haemorrhage in his right parafrontalia, the team of neurosurgeons led by Si Kouxian conducted a craniotomy on Gu Jun at 18:42. The incision was made and the skull drilled to remove carene, cerebral dura and clear away blood clots.

Out of consideration to Gu Jun’s medical history, if they preserve the carene, it might cause a high risk of high cranial pressure or post-op brain edema. Gu Jun might not survive a second brain surgery, therefore the team decided to remove the carene. It meant that Gu Jun lost part of his right skull. Half of his scalp had a sunken impression. If he survived, they would perform cranial reconstruction surgery. Thankfully Gu Jun did not suffer from any other brain trauma so the craniotomy only took 4 hours to complete.

Then it was time for the team of orthopaedists led by Wang Huikang to do their work. They conducted debridement and suturing on many soft tissues. Then it was followed by open reduction internal fixation of bone fractures at the palms, phalanges, cubitus and lower left tibia as well as reduction surgery at shoulder joints. From these traumas, the doctors surmised that Gu Jun fell with his hands facing down trying to cushion the fall. Then he knocked the right side of his head. It was why he suffered heavier trauma on his upper body. Thankfully, his lower body was not affected that seriously and it provided a safe spot for the ECMO surgery to conduct cannulation.

The surgeries came one after another. It took a total of 22 hours. When everything was over, it was already 21:25 on September 9th. Throughout this period, the ECMO team led by Liu Mingfeng kept a close observation on Gu Jun’s vitals and readings. These operations complicated the utilization of the ECMO machine. Thankfully, the team was very experienced and they maintained a stable condition for Gu Jun.

Experts like Lee Cheng and Zhang Zeli from the pulmonary department did not dare to relax for even a second. Even though Gu Jun’s heart had regained autonomous activity, his heartbeat was still too weak. During Gu Jun’s last physical check, his heart was healthy enough to support him to the advanced age of 120 years old but now the reports showed that he suffered from asystole. But with the support and effort of the medical team, Gu Jun did not suffer a second cardiac arrest. His haemodynamics slowly stabilized and his ef rose back to 20 percent and he recovered weak breathing. At that moment, the team could finally say they had won the first battle.

Everyone sighed in relief. But there was still a long, arduous battle ahead. On the afternoon of September 20th, Gu Jun’s EF dropped back to 10 percent and x-ray scanning showed that there was great effusion in his chest. His lungs showed inflammatory infection… The rescue team returned to the surgical room to deal with these complications. This battle took up yet another 30 hours.

The 21st was the Mid-Autumn Festival. Wu Siyu and the rest spent it on the destroyer. Gu Jun’s craniotomy showed no post-op syndrome, this was one of the little good news. The other good news was his ECMO surgery did not suffer blood leakage and it did not cause calf swelling. After these hurdles, Gu Jun’s condition started to stabilize and the medical attention turned to nursing and care. A week after the surgeries, his EF rose back to 30 percent; and after another week, it rose up to 40 percent. His vitals stabilized and therefore 14 days after the ECMO surgery, the team detached him from the system and transferred him to ICU.

By then, Gu Jun’s team had already been sent back to the headquarters at Da Hwa City for subsequent medical treatment. Deng Ximei woke up on September 23rd. Despite some minor headache, she was mentally sound. Her body was fine but she appeared to have lost the power of speech. Due to her performance in this mission, she was officially accepted into the Spell Department. Elder Tong had high hopes in her, hoping that she could one day unlock her full potential. However, for now, she still needed many recuperative treatments. Everyone was overjoyed to hear about Deng Ximei’s recovery but on October 6th, their mood dropped back down.

This was the 18th day Xue Ba was on ECMO. There was a blood infection that caused lungs and liver failure. The medical team tried everything but it was to no avail. On 23:36 that night, the team officially announced Xue Ba’s death. This was a heavy blow for everyone at Phecda. Xue Ba, the team leader of Special Mobile Force, Demon Hunters died at a young age of 39.

Gu Jun’s condition was not that optimistic either. Even though his breathing had recovered and he had been taken off anaesthetic, he showed no sign of resuscitation. The encephalogram confirmed that he was unconscious, this all pointed towards brain death. Even the experts could not give a clear diagnosis on issues regarding the brain. He might be a permanent vegetable or he might wake up tomorrow…

The days went by. On the 18th of October, Gu Jun was still unconscious. He missed the ceremony Phecda gave Xue Ba. The latter was given a hero’s burial at Phecda Revolutionary Memorial Park. Everyone was present except one.

On the 60th day of his coma, the imaging showed that his bone fracture recovered nicely so the team removed the plasters. Despite his condition, Gu Jun was given the best care. The team came over to help him with physical recovery like massage and physical therapy to maintain his musculature. He had lost plenty of weight but he did not suffer from muscular atrophy.

On the 90th day of his coma, 3 months after the craniotomy, the team conducted cranial reconstruction surgery on him. They used the best material, PEEK or polyether ether ketone. PEEK offers optimal bone growth and is radiolucent. The surgery was very successful. A polymer was now added inside Gu Jun’s skull but it was not visible from the outside. His face still looked the same.

It was finally December 31st, the last day of 2021. By then, Gu Jun had been comatose for 103 days already.

…

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