I Became a Plague Doctor in a Romance Fantasy Novel

Severe Trauma Patient (3)

Severe Trauma Patient (3)

Almost forgot a patient due to the splenectomy. They weren’t about to die, nor were they in urgent need of attention.

“But, professor, when you took out the organ just now, did you stick your finger into it…?”

There was no choice.

Blood kept pouring out of the ruptured spleen, and it had to be removed as quickly as possible. There was no time to be gentle.

It’s fortunate this patient seems fine.

Relatively speaking. A torn Achilles tendon is a serious issue. Less critical compared to a ruptured spleen, but still serious.

Most importantly, no surgery is needed.

“Hmm. Another patient from swordsmanship training?”

“Probably.”

It’s not right to make emotional judgments about a patient’s situation, but what on earth?

“How intense is the swordsmanship training? What are they thinking, injuring two people in a day? It’s not like we have an excess of knights.”

“Well, we do have a few extra.”

“Really?”

“Even in noble families, only one child becomes a titled noble. The competition to become a knight is fierce. There must be a reason.”

Istina spoke softly, and I scratched my head. Could that be true…?

If it wasn’t me on duty today or if my ward was full, these guys would have died or become disabled without a doubt.

“Still, killing each other in training is a bit much.”

“Yeah… It’s different from usual.”

“Is there some kind of tournament today?”

“Seems like it. Here’s what happened-”

“Oh, the patient seems to be waking up. Come quickly.”

I stood up, and Istina followed. The event must be large-scale. This is not the time to worry about someone else’s event.

There’s a critically ill patient in front of us.

A patient who has only received first aid and nursing care for about three hours.

From the patient’s perspective, it might be a bit absurd, but you don’t die from a torn ankle ligament. I didn’t feel entirely guilt-free, but the fact is, more urgent cases take priority.

Anyway, let’s see the patient quickly.

“It seems the ankle ligament is torn from the injury. Considering the loud bang, it’s probably the Achilles tendon. Istina, do you know the best treatment for a ruptured Achilles tendon?”

Istina pondered for a moment.

“Achilles tendon. You mean the heel ligament, right?”

“Yes.”

“Uh, are you going to have surgery?”

Since Benjamin had surgery, within Istina’s knowledge, surgery was indeed the right choice.

Surgery is certainly worth considering, but for patients with Achilles tendon rupture, there is no significant difference in prognosis between surgery and conservative treatment.

The professor said so in the orthopedics class.

If it were me, I wouldn’t have surgery.

All surgeries carry the risk of infection.

If bacterial Achilles tendonitis occurs after surgery, it is difficult to treat even with modern medicine.

Even if antibiotics are administered… Well, blood vessels don’t pass through the ligaments. Antibiotics don’t make a significant difference in prognosis.

Of course, there’s no way to guarantee that there won’t be an infection in this makeshift operating room.

It’s hard to quantify, but with healing magic or superhuman recovery abilities, the recovery period after non-surgical treatment could be shortened.

There’s no particular merit to surgery.

Of course, if you have surgery, you can use your foot a few weeks earlier. But crucially, I have no confidence that I can fix the ligament back to its original state.

The spleen… Well, I removed it entirely, and I just nailed the arm bone back together, but

Ligaments are a completely different matter.

It’s a much more delicate surgery than anything I’ve done so far, and I don’t know how to reattach it.

In conclusion, there’s no reason to have surgery. It can be sufficiently treated by other methods.

“I’m not going to have surgery.”

“Then what happens?”

“The Achilles tendon will heal on its own even without surgery. But you’ll need a splint or a cast. It’ll be like that for a few weeks.”

“Is that the best way?”

“If it were me, I wouldn’t get surgery.”

Istina nodded.

The policy was set, and the means were decided. Now it was time to start the treatment. I drew back the curtain around the bed and made eye contact with the patient.

“What’s your name?”

“Oh, it’s Aires.”

Aires. He looked a bit older, but he was still a young man. Come to think of it, he was an academy student, just from the knight department, so his impression was a bit rough.

Thinking about it, the patient whose spleen burst earlier might also be from the same swordsmanship competition and the same knight department. They might be around the same age too.

I felt sorry, thinking of him as an old man.

“Does your leg hurt now?”

“When I got injured, there was a loud bang and it hurt terribly. But now, it doesn’t hurt much.”

Everyone has strong willpower.

“I see.”

“What kind of illness is this?”

I pondered how to explain.

“The ligament that connects the muscles of your heel and calf is torn. It’s called the Achilles tendon.”

“Then what happens?”

Walking will become a bit uncomfortable.

“Until it heals, you won’t be able to do any exercises that involve lifting your heel, like standing on tiptoe. But if you follow the treatment properly, it should return to normal.”

“What kind of treatment will you do?”

“We’ll put a splint on it. You must not use your heel tendon for at least a month.”

“A month? That’s quite long.”

“It’s better than not being able to run for life.”

The patient fell silent at these words.

Surprisingly, even with a ruptured Achilles tendon, one can still walk. In fact, there are cases where people don’t come to the hospital or miss the treatment period because of this.

It’s fortunate that they came to the hospital right away this time.

“Is there no other way?”

“No, there isn’t.”

The patient sighed.

“Ah, it’s not easy.”

I don’t see any other options. The only possible treatment in this situation is to put on a cast for a few weeks.

“Alright, let’s do as you think, doctor.”

“Patient, we need to make a definitive diagnosis. Is it alright if we take a look at your leg for a moment?”

Aires nodded and then sat on the bed, extending both legs.

Istina and I bowed our heads in front of the patient and examined the leg. Where is the injury?

How can we be sure that the Achilles tendon is ruptured? If this were a modern hospital, we would naturally take an X-ray.

But there are no X-rays here.

Then what are you going to look at?

“Istina. The assumption is that this patient has a ruptured Achilles tendon. How can we prove that the Achilles tendon is ruptured?”

“Uh, if we press on the affected area… wouldn’t we be able to feel the ruptured part?”

The patient was horrified.

“Oh, don’t just touch the injured area.”

Well, it would hurt if you touched it. Besides, the injured leg looks quite swollen.

“Hmm. The best way is to compare both sides. It’s not just applicable to the leg. If you look at this patient, one leg maintains the tension behind the heel, but the other doesn’t, right?”

“Ah!”

Asymmetry. It’s always something to be aware of.

“Excuse me. I need to run my fingers along the Achilles tendon to check if there’s any chance it might not reattach properly.”

Istina tilted her head.

“But, how does a ruptured tendon reattach?”

“Uh, it’s a bit complicated. Muscles are encased in something called fascia. Even if the Achilles tendon is ruptured, it’s still encased in one fascia, so if maintained well, it might reattach.”

Honestly, expecting a full functional recovery is unrealistic. Ah, I can feel the ruptured part of the Achilles tendon. Align the top and bottom-

“Lower your toes.”

When the toes are lowered, the Achilles tendon rises. The closer the two pieces get, the higher the chance they’ll reattach. Let’s see.

“Yes. We’ll fix it with a bandage like this.”

I wonder if we have a plaster cast.

“When can I go back?”

“Uh, whether we use a splint or a plaster cast, it needs to be fixed as thoroughly as possible. It will probably take a few days.”

The patient slowly nodded as if they understood. I felt a bit sorry for them. There was no guarantee that their function would recover.

“Let’s make you some crutches too.”

Still, it shouldn’t be a big problem.

“The swelling is too severe right now, so we’ll need to put on a plaster cast once it goes down a bit.”

What was the medicine for reducing swelling again? We could use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, but as far as I know, they’re not good for ligament recovery.

It’s better to just leave it alone.

We stepped out of the ward for a moment.

It looks like we’ll be busy for a while because of the new patients, so we should rest while we can.

It was only after a few minutes of leisure that I could properly grasp the situation.

The Academy’s Department of Knight Studies Fencing Tournament.

Every spring, people who know how to wield a sword gather from all over the country to compete in fencing, and today was the day of the event.

Every year, a few people get injured.

Because of the good treatment I gave Benjamin last time, they brought all the patients from the fencing tournament, mostly high-ranking nobles, to me.

“That’s what happened.”

“Ah. You should have said so.”

Istina hesitated a bit.

“I was going to, but the professor started yelling and running around, telling me to bring a bucket of water. I missed the timing to say it.”

Did I do that?

I think I did.

“Anyway, I’m glad it was resolved well.”

Kailas. This patient had a ruptured spleen. And Aires was the patient just now. I put a splint on until the plaster cast was ready.

It’s not impossible to use a plaster cast, but it takes a day to prepare the materials.

“Usually, a few people get injured every year, right? But this time, it seems like no one had any problems. Everyone will be happy.”

Is that so.

I leaned against the wall, and Istina sat down on the floor. I’m tired. Once I finish with these two patients, I need to lie down for a bit.