Working all night to save a patient with a stab wound in the abdomen

On April 17, news from Vinh Long General Hospital said that the hospital's doctors had just performed a 6-hour surgery to save the life of a male patient who had been stabbed in the abdomen and suffered very serious injuries.

Patient stabbed through abdomen, survival rate at red alert level

Accordingly, at 00:30 on April 7, the night shift at Vinh Long General Hospital received emergency treatment for male patient PTT (23 years old) in critical condition due to a penetrating abdominal wound, severe blood loss, pale mucous membranes, rapid pulse, low blood pressure, severe pain throughout the abdomen and heavy bleeding from the wound in the epigastric region. The survival rate was at the red alert level.

Doctors congratulate patients on their speedy recovery

Photo: Nam Long

The entire on-duty team activated the internal “red alert” procedure, the patient was actively resuscitated and transferred straight to the operating room, bypassing all administrative procedures to race against time. The surgery lasted 6 hours overnight. During the process of opening the abdomen, the doctors discovered that the patient’s abdomen contained about 2,000 ml of thin blood and blood clots, the liver had a 3 cm tear in the third subsegment, the portal vein was torn 1 cm long and bleeding heavily, the pancreas was torn in half and the right rectus abdominis muscle was torn.

The team quickly cauterized the liver to stop bleeding, clamped and sutured the portal vein, closed the head of the pancreas, connected the remaining part to the small intestine to maintain digestion and sutured the remaining injuries to stop bleeding, and continuously transfused 8 units of blood and other blood products to maintain blood pressure and vital functions for the patient. After 6 hours of intense surgery, by the morning of the same day, the surgery was successful, the patient was awake, blood pressure was stable, vital signs were positive, and clear fluid was drained.

Doctor examines patient after surgery

Photo: NAM LONG

After more than 1 week of resuscitation and treatment at the General Surgery Department, patient T. recovered spectacularly, the surgical wound was dry, he could eat and walk easily, his spirit was stable and he started to resume his daily activities.

Dr. Tran Van Nhieu (a doctor in the surgical team) said that this was a very serious emergency case, with complex injuries to many important organs in the abdomen, especially the pancreas which was torn in half and a large blood vessel was punctured. If not diagnosed early and intervened promptly, the risk of death due to blood loss is very high.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/xuyen-dem-cuu-benh-nhan-bi-dam-thau-bung-185250417133110062.htm