Famous Among Top Surgeons in the 90s
Chapter 1164: [1164] The sudden alarm sounds

Chapter 1164: [1164] The sudden alarm sounds

Just when everything seemed to be wrapping up smoothly.

The ECG monitor suddenly emitted a few sharp beeps—beep, beep.

An alarm? Zhang Tinghai turned his head.

The sudden turn of events happened so fast. Before he had time to take a closer look, a prolonged beep sounded, and the patient’s heart rhythm curve appeared to have flattened?

Cardiac arrest?

What’s going on?

No major bleeding, the gallbladder was already removed, and the surgical knife wasn’t near the gallbladder triangle.

Zhang Tinghai’s mouth opened into a perfect circle. In these few seconds, he felt as though he was trapped in a nightmare—a recurring nightmare spanning the past two weeks.

The other people in the operating room momentarily thought they had heard wrong.

The two chief surgeons shot their heads up and turned instantly.

Someone shouted suddenly, "The patient’s heart has stopped—"

The two chief surgeons immediately put down their surgical instruments and rushed over to perform chest compressions on the patient. The surgery was paused entirely; rescuing the patient’s heartbeat took precedence.

Gao Zhaocheng sprang into action, but before he could reach, a figure streaked past everyone like a bolt of lightning, moving faster than any of them, and plunged straight to the edge of the operating table.

It was Zhang Huayao, raising his fist to deliver a precordial thump to the patient’s chest. After the strike—no effect. _{f|ree(w)ebn\o.vel.com}

Screams erupted in the operating room: "Bring the defibrillator!"

The anesthesiologist and nurses scrambled to push the emergency defibrillator into the operating room, but Zhang Huayao ignored it.

The defibrillator? What good could it do? If it worked, those earlier thumps would’ve worked too. Both a defibrillator and a precordial thump primarily address arrhythmias and are most effective for ventricular fibrillation or ventricular tachycardia. Certain arrhythmias don’t prioritize defibrillator use; whether to use one must be considered cautiously. Ventricular fibrillation or tachycardia may signal impending cardiac arrest in some patients, but not all cases of cardiac arrest involve these conditions.

If there’s no ventricular fibrillation or tachycardia, a completely stopped heart renders the defibrillator useless. As a cardiology specialist, Zhang Huayao knew this all too well. Without a second thought, his hands overlapped on the patient’s chest, initiating chest compressions.

One, two, three, four, five, six—sharp, forceful motions. When the cardiology boss performed compressions, it was ferocious, almost frenzied.

The boss’s reactions were swift and precise!

Everyone else in the room watched his actions, holding their breath one by one.

Press, press, and press again—was the patient’s heartbeat returning to normal?

The only sound left in the operating room was Zhang Huayao’s heavy breathing as he continued external chest compressions.

Despite Zhang Huayao’s aggressive efforts, the patient’s heart showed no sign of recovery.

The legs of the doctors present began to weaken. Without any warning, the patient’s heart directly stopped right before their eyes? The surgery had been remarkably smooth, nearing completion, yet this sudden black-swan event felt like an explosive shock that left their minds blank.

Huff, huff—hot breath surged repeatedly from behind the surgical masks worn by the doctors. The mix of hot and cold air seemed to make their bodies tremble.

"Call Cardiothoracic Surgery!" Gao Zhaocheng snapped back to his senses and turned to dash out to call for the specialists.

No one understood why the heart had failed, but if prolonged chest compressions proved futile, the only option left was for Cardiothoracic Surgery to step in, open the chest, and perform cardiac massage—a last-ditch gamble with life and death.

"What do you mean call Cardiothoracic Surgery?" A thunderous shout interrupted Gao Zhaocheng’s steps.

He turned back and saw that the one yelling was Zhang Tinghai.

"Why ask Cardiothoracic Surgery when you could ask her?" Zhang Tinghai suddenly pointed at Xie Wanying.

Had the anesthesiologist lost his mind? Was he spouting nonsense?

Now wasn’t the time to consult someone from Hepatobiliary Surgery who was still an intern, instead of calling specialists from the cardiology team.