A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 533

Chapter 104: Parental Heart (4)

Swoosh.

Swoosh.

Shin Hyun-jung rubbed the pregnant woman’s abdomen with an ultrasound probe covered in gel.

The fetus’s image appeared on the ultrasound monitor. Thanks to the high-definition ultrasound, the fetus’s features were very clear.

The overall outline of the body was visible.

The position of the eyes, nose, and mouth could be discerned.

The movements of the hands and feet looked like wiggling.

If Jun-hoo hadn’t been the surgeon, he would have found this image amazing and miraculous.

“Sorry the image is so grainy.”

“It’s okay. It’s unavoidable in this situation.”

“The catheter needs to be inserted here.”

Shin Hyun-jung pointed to a spot near the pregnant woman’s navel with her index finger. She wiped the area with gauze and disinfected it.

Jun-hoo nodded, his expression determined.

He held a thin, thread-like wire, the catheter, in his hand.

The journey with the catheter would not be easy. The road ahead was challenging, complex, and potentially long.

But he had to do it.

Jun-hoo was also going to be a father.

Could he give up if his child had a ‘Vein of Galen malformation’ [a rare congenital condition where there’s an abnormal connection between arteries and veins inside the brain]?

Absolutely not.

He would use every available means to ensure a healthy birth for his child.

The case of Kim Nam-joon and Seo Bo-young wasn’t just someone else’s problem.

Also, similar cases could appear again at any time.

Therefore, it was necessary to perfect the procedure now.

To prevent the repetition of such tragedies.

“Beginning the catheter dilation for the Vein of Galen malformation.”

Jun-hoo’s voice echoed softly in the operating room.

The staff had tense expressions.

The patient was a celebrity, the surgery was extremely difficult, and the hospital director was watching.

They couldn’t help but feel the pressure.

Jun-hoo took a deep breath and inserted the catheter into the pregnant woman’s abdomen.

Thump!

The feeling of the catheter penetrating the abdomen was vividly transmitted to his hand.

Each time it pushed through subcutaneous fat, muscle layers, and the abdominal wall, he felt a slight resistance at his fingertips.

“Stop for a second. Did the catheter enter the abdominal cavity?”

“That’s what it feels like to me.”

“Hold on. Let me check.”

Shin Hyun-jung busily moved the ultrasound probe. Everyone’s eyes, including Jun-hoo’s, were glued to the monitor.

A white, thread-like object was visible near the fetus’s thigh.

“Move forward again. Considering the current position, it would be better to insert it into the left femoral artery rather than the right.”

“I agree.”

“Advance diagonally, slowly.”

“Okay.”

Following Shin Hyun-jung’s guidance, Jun-hoo carefully moved the catheter.

The first hurdle of this procedure was accessing the fetus’s femoral artery.

It was difficult to control the catheter due to the amniotic fluid, and accessing the femoral artery in one go was also challenging.

However, if they kept poking the fetus’s thigh, an infection could occur later.

“Pull the catheter back a little. Turn the angle 30 degrees to the left. Then advance again from there.”

Jun-hoo followed Shin Hyun-jung’s instructions without complaint.

Was there some kind of secret formula?

Following her instructions allowed him to insert the catheter into the femoral artery without any problems.

The start was promising.

When doing mental simulations alone, Jun-hoo had struggled quite a bit in this part.

“Wow! As expected, an OB/GYN expert is different.”

“Of course. Did you think thoracic surgeons collaborate with OB/GYNs for fetal cardiovascular procedures for no reason?”

Shin Hyun-jung puffed out her chest.

But that moment was fleeting.

Shin Hyun-jung’s expression quickly turned serious.

“The area where I can help is limited from here on. From now on, I can only secure the field of vision, manage vitals, and offer simple advice. Are you ready?”

“Of course. I’ll make sure your efforts aren’t in vain. I promise.”

Jun-hoo nodded.

“I’ve felt it since medical school, but you have a strange charm.”

“Out of the blue?”

“In some ways, you seem reckless, and in other ways, you seem brave. It’s a charm that’s hard to define.”

“I know the reason.”

“What is it?”

“I’ll tell you after the surgery is over.”

“Wow, are you really going to be so unfair?”

“I naturally have an alluring meanness.”

Jun-hoo winked.

There was a reason why people interpreted Jun-hoo in two different ways.

First, from the perspective of fellow doctors, Jun-hoo could seem like a fool who rushed into surgeries without considering his own limitations.

But from the perspective of patients and their families, Jun-hoo could seem like a reliable guardian angel.

Because he insisted that he could perform surgeries that others deemed hopeless and advised against.

The interpretation could be completely different depending on whether you looked at Jun-hoo from a colleague’s perspective or from the perspective of patients and their families.

‘The real battle starts now.’

Jun-hoo glared at the ultrasound monitor as if it were an enemy and grabbed the catheter again.

He activated the Manhwa Gong [a fictional martial arts technique], maximizing his senses. An invisible barrier of internal energy surrounded Jun-hoo.

Information poured in like a waterfall from all directions, but he filtered out everything except sight and touch.

The most important senses in catheter procedures were sight and touch.

The hand stilled.

Stopped time began to move.

* * *

Jun-hoo became one with the catheter and advanced smoothly.

He passed through the fetus’s femoral artery, through the abdominal aorta, and advanced to the heart aorta with unstoppable momentum.

So far, the arteries were relatively thick.

There was little risk of damaging the blood vessels without significant effort.

As the catheter approached the carotid and internal carotid arteries, the atmosphere in the operating room slowly changed.

Shin Hyun-jung’s eyes became anxious.

The staff also became nervous.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“What do you mean?”

“We can’t even clearly see the fetal brain blood vessels with precision ultrasound. It’s like driving to Busan [a major city in South Korea] without a navigation system.”

“The navigation system is already in my head.”

Jun-hoo replied confidently.

Using internal energy as a contrast agent, Jun-hoo had already created a map of the fetus’s brain blood vessels.

All he had to do was follow that path.

“Just check if there’s any bleeding along the way, though there shouldn’t be.”

“Okay.”

Jun-hoo didn’t care about the staff’s worries. He silently continued on his path.

He earnestly entered the brain blood vessels while passing through the external carotid artery.

According to what Jun-hoo remembered.

From here on out, it was truly a road to hell.

The blood vessel walls become narrow and thin.

The blood vessels branch out in complex ways in all directions.

Some blood vessels curved, and some courses were winding like the Daegwallyeong mountain road [a famous mountain pass in Korea known for its winding roads].

But Jun-hoo rushed in without hesitation.

The hand pushing the catheter never stopped.

‘It’s hard to believe even when you see it. His touch seems so rough, but there’s no bleeding?’

Shin Hyun-jung was inwardly shocked.

Looking only at his hand movements, it seemed like Jun-hoo was performing a routine procedure rather than a fetal brain blood vessel procedure.

He was nonchalantly inserting the catheter deeper and deeper.

Worried, Shin Hyun-jung tracked the catheter’s path with ultrasound.

But what?

There was no sign of bleeding.

The catheter was wriggling its way through the narrow brain blood vessels of the fetus.

As if saying, ‘Just follow me.’

“Isn’t it amazing?”

“Yeah. It’s like watching magic.”

“This is only possible because it’s me. Other people can’t imitate it.”

“It looks like that to me too.”

Shin Hyun-jung nodded as if acknowledging it.

‘It’ll be over without any problems, unexpectedly.’

A smile spread across Jun-hoo’s lips.

The malformed vein was now right in front of him.

The procedure would be over once the vein, which had swelled up like a balloon, was filled with metal coils.

When the metal coil fills the vein, blood flow will be blocked.

Therefore, the cerebral blood flow rate, which had slowed down due to flowing into the malformed vein, would return to normal.

Hydrocephalus [fluid accumulation in the brain], cerebrovascular disease [diseases affecting blood vessels in the brain].

Furthermore, permanent brain damage could be prevented.

The reason why Jun-hoo was able to advance the catheter with unstoppable momentum.

That was thanks to ‘internal energy.’

Jun-hoo sent internal energy along with the catheter.

And by releasing the internal energy carried in the catheter, he built a strong wall on the outside of the fetus’s brain blood vessels.

Since the wall of internal energy was strong.

Even if the catheter pierced the blood vessel, there was no fear of the blood vessel tearing or rupturing.

The internal energy would absorb the impact.

The idea of building a wall of internal energy was borrowed from Hosinganggi [a fictional martial arts technique involving defensive energy].

Hosinganggi.

This was an internal defense technique that defended the body by surrounding it with internal energy.

When he thought about it, Jun-hoo had mainly used internal energy for exploration or attack for a long time, but he had never used it for defense.

When he changed his thinking, a new path opened up.

“Jun-hoo. Just a moment.”

“Why?”

“The fetus is starting to move?”

Shin Hyun-jung notified him in an urgent voice.

Jun-hoo, who had been distracted for a moment, looked at the ultrasound monitor and saw that the child was indeed faintly wiggling.

It was a complete disaster.

If he moved his leg, there was a risk of the catheter falling out.

If he sneezed, the brain blood vessel could rupture.

For the first time, bewilderment appeared on Jun-hoo’s face, who had been calm throughout the surgery.

He had never trained for this situation, even with mental simulations.

For a moment, everything went dark.

“Doesn’t general anesthesia usually make the fetus quiet?”

“That’s usually the case. But rarely, it doesn’t.”

“How about administering a sedative?”

“I’ll try administering it. But there’s no guarantee that the child will stay still until the sedative takes effect.”

Shin Hyun-jung’s teeth chattered, perhaps because her anxiety was extreme.

The staff’s faces also turned white.

There was no time to hesitate.

‘It’s all or nothing!’

Jun-hoo immediately activated the Cheon Gong [a fictional martial arts technique].

He created a barrier of time using internal energy, isolating only himself and the pregnant woman.

Of course, even if he did this.

He couldn’t stop the fetus’s movement.

Because Jun-hoo and the fetus were on the same timeline.

But at least the staff wouldn’t notice whatever actions Jun-hoo took in the immediate future.

I have to find a way quickly.

Otherwise…….

Jun-hoo bit his lip tightly.

* * *

Observation operating room.

The hospital director had his arms crossed and a displeased look on his face.

According to what he heard from Ben, the chances of success for this surgery were virtually nonexistent.

Cardiovascular malformation was one thing.

He had heard that catheter procedures were impossible for brain blood vessel malformations.

Wasn’t the patient a fetus, not even a child?

Inserting a catheter into the narrow and weak brain blood vessels of a fetus that had not yet fully developed?

Ben said this was a reckless act and couldn’t condone it.

And he also said this.

“I’m disappointed in Jun-hoo. Recklessly performing surgery is not always the answer. You should also know how to distinguish between surgeries you can do and surgeries you can’t do.”

“…….”

“But it’s hard to believe that you’re proceeding with such an absurd surgery.”

“…….”

“Was the reputation Jun-hoo has built up so far achieved with the blood and sacrifice of patients?”

The hospital director deliberately remained silent in response to Ben’s question.

It’s hard to believe, but in fact, Jun-hoo’s surgery success rate was 100 percent. Until now, that is.

But there was no need to reveal the truth.

It was much more advantageous to let Ben misunderstand Jun-hoo.

To put it coldly, he was simply keeping his mouth shut, not actively lying.

But!

Contrary to expectations, the surgery was progressing too smoothly.

First of all, the OB/GYN he brought in seemed to be skilled. She had excellent field of vision and knew how to guide Jun-hoo.

The catheter entered the fetus’s femoral artery in one go.

After that, it was Jun-hoo’s showtime.

Jun-hoo advanced the catheter into the fetus’s brain blood vessels with great momentum, as if he were performing an adult brain blood vessel catheter procedure.

During that time, the mother’s vitals remained stable.

“Ben, you said it was a reckless surgery?”

The hospital director glared at Ben and asked in a reproachful manner.

“That can’t be.”

“Isn’t that the case? Right now.”

Ben couldn’t answer and avoided the hospital director’s gaze.

But the situation soon took a dramatic turn. The fetus began to move, interfering with the surgery.

If he could, the hospital director wanted to kiss the fetus.

Seo Jun-hoo.

I told you I’d make you pay the price for disobeying my orders, right?

Your reputation will plummet today. I’m going to gather all the reporters I know and make this incident a major issue.

Since Ben is by my side.

You’ll be humiliated overseas too.

Then you’ll understand.

That you touched the sleeping lion’s whiskers. And that it hurts more when you fall from a high place.”

The hospital director smiled evilly.