143: Chapter 143 He Zhongfeng
Eight centimeters, from the corner of the eye to the corner of the mouth, a deep laceration with irregular, jagged wound edges.
Lu Chen had a rough idea in his mind.
"Where is he now?"
"He's in the Emergency Department treatment room. The doctor on duty took one look and said they couldn't suture this kind of wound well, recommending a transfer to the Plastic Surgery Department or the Department of Hand Surgery."
"Then you should look for the Plastic Surgery Department."
Section Chief He Zhongfeng made a bitter face.
"I asked. There's only one Attending Physician on duty in the Plastic Surgery Department today. After seeing photos of the wound, he said this kind of irregular deep laceration involves the repair of facial expression muscles, and he isn't confident he can achieve a perfect result. He suggested going to the Provincial Hospital's plastic surgery center."
"Then go to the Provincial Hospital."
"The Provincial Hospital's plastic surgery center is fully booked for outpatient appointments today. The earliest they can schedule it is tomorrow morning, but my uncle-in-law can't wait."
Lu Chen looked at Section Chief He Zhongfeng.
"He can't wait? It's not like the wound can't be temporarily treated to stop the bleeding, and then you can go to the Provincial Hospital for a refined repair tomorrow."
Section Chief He Zhongfeng's eyes dimmed slightly.
"The problem isn't with the wound itself."
"Then where is it?"
"It's his profession."
Section Chief He Zhongfeng lowered his voice.
"Dr. Lu, my uncle-in-law is in the performing arts. He makes a living with his face; facial expression is his core competency."
"The Attending Physician in the Plastic Surgery Department said this wound happens to pass through the intersection of the facial expression muscle groups. Both the zygomaticus major and the levator anguli oris have been completely severed."
Lu Chen's eyes narrowed slightly.
Both the zygomaticus major and the levator anguli oris were severed.
One of these two muscles is responsible for pulling the corners of the mouth up and out when smiling, and the other is responsible for lifting the corners of the mouth.
If both are severed, it means the smiling function on the right side of the face is basically ruined.
Even if the wound is sutured, if the facial expression muscles aren't precisely aligned, the smile will be crooked after healing.
For an ordinary person, a crooked smile is just a bit unsightly.
But for a performing artist who makes a living from facial expressiveness, this is the end of their career.
Section Chief He Zhongfeng's eyes were filled with obvious anxiety.
"The Attending Physician in the Plastic Surgery Department said that for this level of fine repair of facial expression muscles combined with cosmetic Suturing, there aren't more than five people in the entire province who can do it."
"And even if it's done, most can only recover to seventy or eighty percent."
"Wanting a perfect recovery is almost impossible."
Lu Chen leaned against the wall, not speaking.
Section Chief He Zhongfeng stared at him.
"But Director Xu from the Department of Hand Surgery evaluated you last time, she said something."
"She said your Suturing precision is the highest level she has ever seen, with the tissue alignment error of every stitch approaching zero."
Lu Chen finally understood why he had come to find him.
For this kind of fine alignment Suturing of facial expression muscles, the key isn't the technical plan.
The plan is fixed; how to align, how to perform layered Suturing—it's all clearly written in textbooks.
The key is in the hands.
It's in how steady and accurate the hands executing the plan are, and how delicate the perception of tissue layers is.
And Lu Chen's God-level Suturing Technique was already at the god level.
The tissue alignment error approaches zero, hand tactile sensitivity is increased by 25%, and he can perceive tissue layer differences invisible to the naked eye.
With this level of operational precision, performing fine repair of facial expression muscles is indeed the most suitable choice.
But the problem is.
Lu Chen looked at the person in front of him.
This person had secretly arranged difficulties for him in the past two months and colluded with judges to lower his scores during the provincial assessment.
He even intentionally delayed the Department of Thoracic Surgery consultation time during the chest drainage incident, almost causing a patient to die.
Now he was turning around to ask for his help.
Lu Chen's expression was very calm.
"Section Chief He, are you sure you want to look for me?"
Section Chief He Zhongfeng's face twitched.
Of course, he knew what Lu Chen was thinking.
"Dr. Lu, I really didn't do the right thing before."
"Regardless of the reasons, those things shouldn't have been done; I admit that."
Lu Chen didn't respond.
Section Chief He Zhongfeng gritted his teeth.
"But my uncle-in-law's wound can't wait. His wound is only being temporarily compressed to stop the bleeding in the treatment room. The longer it drags on, the more severe the tissue edema will be, and the worse the Suturing result will be."
"I know that."
"I've contacted all the connections I could. The people in the Plastic Surgery Department don't have the confidence, I can't get a slot at the Provincial Hospital, and Director Xu from the Department of Hand Surgery isn't at the hospital today; she's on a business trip."
Section Chief He Zhongfeng's voice carried an unnatural low profile.
"You are the only person I can find right now who can perform this surgery."
Lu Chen looked at him and was silent for several seconds.
The corridor was so quiet that only the humming of the air conditioner remained.
A layer of sweat seeped out on Section Chief He Zhongfeng's forehead again.
He knew how stupid those things he had done before were.
He had initially treated Lu Chen as a soft persimmon that could be easily squeezed, thinking about how to trip him up and how to make him make a fool of himself.
As a result, not only did the person not make a fool of himself, but he became more and more formidable.
So formidable that he was the number one in the provincial assessment by a wide margin, and so formidable that the entire provincial Emergency Department circle knew his name.
And now, he had no other options.
He could only stand in front of this young man he had targeted, bowing his head to ask for his help.
Ironic.
Too ironic.
Lu Chen spoke.
"How long has the wound been there?"
Section Chief He Zhongfeng was stunned.
"About forty minutes."
"Has a CT or X-ray been taken? Confirm whether there are any fractures in the facial bones?"
"It has been taken. No fractures, just a deep laceration of the soft tissue."
"Is there any damage to the branches of the facial nerve?"
"The doctor who admitted him checked and said the main branches of the facial nerve are not severed, but the facial expression muscles are."
Lu Chen quickly went over it in his mind.
Right cheek, corner of the eye to the corner of the mouth, eight centimeters.
Irregular, jagged wound edges, deep to the facial expression muscle layer, the zygomaticus major and levator anguli oris are completely severed, and the facial nerve branches are intact.
The fact that the facial nerve branches are not severed is good news; it means that after the muscle repair, nerve signals can still be transmitted normally, and there is a basis for the recovery of facial expression function.
The bad news is the irregular, jagged wound edges, plus the complete severance of the two facial expression muscles; the difficulty of Suturing is extremely high.
One must find the corresponding end of every bundle of severed muscle fibers on the irregular wound surface, then perform precise alignment Suturing, while also ensuring the cosmetic effect of the superficial skin.
In other words, this is a facial fine surgery with extremely abnormal technical requirements.
If an ordinary doctor performs this kind of surgery, even if it's finished, the patient's face will most likely be left with obvious scarring, and the expression will not be able to return to a natural state.
But.
God-level Suturing Technique.
Tissue alignment error approaches zero.
Hand tactile sensitivity is increased by 25%, and he can perceive tissue layer differences invisible to the naked eye.
After Suturing, the healing speed is increased by 35%, and the scar formation rate is reduced by 80%.
For Lu Chen, this kind of operation is difficult, but not impossible.
He thought for a moment.
"Fine, I'll go take a look."
Section Chief He Zhongfeng's expression obviously relaxed.
"Thank you, thank you, Dr. Lu."
"Don't thank me yet. I have to see the wound first before I decide if I can do it. Not all wounds are suitable for direct Suturing."
"Okay, okay, you take a look first."
Section Chief He Zhongfeng turned and walked towards the Emergency Department.
Lu Chen followed behind. After taking two steps, he turned back and shouted to the Nurse Station.
"Sun Ji, I'm going to the Emergency Department treatment room. You keep an eye on the Red Zone first. If anything happens, page me."
"Okay, go ahead."
Shen Xiaoning poked her head out from the Nurse Station.
"Dr. Lu, where are you going?"
"The treatment room, there's a wound I need to look at."
"I'll go with you, to help you hand things or something."
Lu Chen nodded.
Shen Xiaoning immediately ran over and followed behind him.
She saw Section Chief He Zhongfeng walking in front and frowned slightly.
She got close to Lu Chen and asked in a low voice.
"Why is it him?"
"His uncle-in-law is injured, a facial laceration that requires fine Suturing."
"So he came to ask for your help?"
"Yes."
Shen Xiaoning's expression was a bit subtle.
"About those things before..."
"Let's treat the patient first; we can talk about other things later."
Shen Xiaoning glanced at Lu Chen and didn't say anything else.