Nghe An: Saving the life of a patient with a ruptured heart due to a work accident

Previously, on the afternoon of December 27, 2018, patient Nguyen Huu Tai (45 years old, Hung Dung ward, Vinh city) was hospitalized with closed chest trauma, pale skin, low blood pressure; pupils dilated 4 mm, no light reflex, no pulse, very deep coma...

The accident happened while doing carpentry, Mr. Nguyen Huu Tai was hit hard in the chest by a large piece of wood.

Emergency heart surgery for patient Nguyen Huu Tai. Photo: Hoang Yen

After examination, the doctors discovered that the patient was in shock from blood loss, the chest area in front of the heart was bruised and sunken, and the inner end of the left 5th rib was broken. Ultrasound at the emergency bed showed that the pericardium had a lot of bloody fluid causing acute cardiac tamponade.

The emergency team determined that this was a very urgent case, as the patient could have suffered damage to his heart and major blood vessels, threatening rapid death. The patient had to undergo pericardiocentesis to relieve pressure right in the emergency room. The patient's heart began to beat again and he was transferred to emergency surgery.

Although the patient's relatives could not arrive in time when they arrived at the emergency room, the doctors boldly asked the hospital leadership for permission to perform surgery to save the patient's life.

Master, Doctor Pham Van Chung - Department of Cardiovascular Thoracic Surgery - main surgeon of the surgery (Provincial General Hospital) said: The team opened the chest urgently to decompress the heart. The heart rupture about 2 cm long was gushing blood and was quickly treated to stop the bleeding. The broken ribs were fixed with special steel thread. With the complexity of a surgery for heart trauma and hemorrhagic shock, 4 days after surgery, the patient was continuously monitored closely in the cardiac resuscitation room.

After 10 days, patient Nguyen Huu Tai has basically recovered his health. Photo: Hoang Yen

According to Dr. Chung: Heart injuries are relatively rare, but when they occur, the consequences are extremely dangerous. Most patients with severe heart ruptures have a very poor prognosis and can die immediately after the accident. Saving a patient with a heart rupture like this requires close coordination between the emergency team from the outpatient department, emergency room, cardiac surgery team, anesthesia and resuscitation.

After more than 10 days of surgery, patient Nguyen Huu Tai has recovered and is expected to be discharged tomorrow (January 9).