Nghe An Friendship General Hospital successfully saved a patient with a ruptured liver and severe abdominal bleeding.
On February 2nd, Nghe An Friendship General Hospital announced that it had successfully saved a 27-year-old male patient who suffered a severe liver rupture and acute hemorrhagic shock following a traffic accident, thanks to the activation of an inter-hospital red alert and emergency surgery.
In the early morning of January 9th, Mr. LVD (27 years old, residing in Quy Hop commune, Nghe An province) was involved in a traffic accident and was taken to the Northwest Nghe An Regional General Hospital in a coma, with a rapid, weak pulse and unmeasurable blood pressure - typical signs of severe hemorrhagic shock, threatening immediate death.
An ultrasound performed at the bedside revealed that the patient had suffered a severe liver rupture with extensive bleeding in the abdominal cavity. Doctors at the lower-level facility immediately performed surgery to temporarily stop the bleeding by packing the wound, while simultaneously activating an inter-hospital emergency alert, urgently transferring the patient to a higher-level facility.
Upon receiving the information, Nghe An Friendship General Hospital mobilized a surgical team, prepared the operating room, and made ready 10 units of blood and blood products – a crucial element in the emergency treatment of patients with severe blood loss.
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The patient was admitted to the Emergency Department of Nghe An Friendship General Hospital in an extremely critical condition: pale skin and mucous membranes, rapid and weak pulse that was difficult to detect, blood pressure of only 65/40 mmHg despite being maintained with two types of high-dose vasopressors, and significant bleeding through the midline abdominal incision.
The hepatobiliary surgery team, led by Specialist Doctor Level 2 Le Anh Xuan, PhD, Doctor Nguyen Huy Toan (Department of General Surgery) and their colleagues, urgently performed a liver resection due to trauma.
During the surgery, the surgical team performed selective hepatic pedicle control and dry hepatectomy using the Ton That Tung method – a technique requiring high professional skill and strong surgical expertise, especially in the context of the patient being in severe hemorrhagic shock.
This technique also won first prize in the Nghe An Province Science and Technology Innovation Project in 2023, affirming its practical value in emergency treatment of severe injuries.
After more than two hours of tense surgery, the patient underwent right hepatectomy and active biliary drainage. During the operation, due to the exceptionally severe blood loss, the patient required a total of 10 units of packed red blood cells and plasma of the same blood type.
Following surgery, the patient received intensive treatment in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit for 6 days, overcoming the most critical phase, and was then transferred to the General Surgery Department for continued treatment. The patient has now been discharged in stable condition.
Dr. Nguyen Huy Toan stated: "Acute abdominal bleeding due to liver rupture is a critical emergency. Correct initial treatment, timely referral, and effective inter-hospital coordination are decisive factors. The success of the surgery is a vivid testament to the professional competence, readiness, responsibility of the healthcare system, and the profound humanitarian values of the medical profession."
