On November 29, after more than 2 weeks of emergency treatment and surgery on his broken right arm due to injury, combined with rehabilitation exercises, Mr. Vu Duc Trong was discharged from the hospital.
Around 11 pm on November 12, 2019, the Emergency Department of Vinmec Danang International Hospital received patient Vu Duc Trong (residing in Nguyen Cu Trinh ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City) from Dung Quat Port, Quang Ngai. He was rushed into the hospital with a broken right arm, bruised right forearm, and complete loss of sensation and function.
Mr. Trong is a marine surveyor. While working on a ship, he, unfortunately, had an accident. He was given first aid on a boat and then rushed to shore by speedboat. Later, he was taken to a hospital in Quang Nam with temporarily fixed splints and transferred to Vinmec Danang International Hospital.
At the emergency department of Vinmec Da Nang Hospital, the patient was immediately admitted, comprehensively examined, stabilized, and ordered a CT angiogram for assessment. The imaging results showed that the patient had complete occlusion of the axillary artery. The doctors on duty realized that the risk of total necrosis of the right arm was very high and amputation would likely be required if the intervention had not been done to restore circulation in time. The team leader at the hospital activated the red mode in the hospital for emergencies. The doctors then transferred the patient to the operating room, and mobilized doctors on duty specialized in emergency surgery, bone trauma surgery, neurovascular surgery, anesthesia resuscitation, and imaging diagnosis with blood supply delivered to be ready for the emergency surgery.
Two emergency surgical teams participated in the operation for the patient. One team restored the complicated fractures of the right humerus while the other performed surgery to retrieve the 25-cm long left saphenous vein and replace it for the collapsed right brachial artery and fill the internal thrombus. After 5 hours of resuscitation and surgery, the operation was finished successfully.
According to Dr. Nguyen Thai Tri - Head of Emergency Resuscitation Department, Vinmec Danang International Hospital, this is a case of severe and complicated trauma that included fractures and damage to the neurovascular bundle, resulting in loss of nourishment sent to the entire right arm, loss of sensation, and loss of movement. In this case, the time from the incident to when the patient was admitted to the hospital was nearly 8 hours. Given the fact that the "golden time" is only 6 hours, if not handled well, the risk of complete amputation of the patient's right arm would be unavoidable.
Continuously monitored for 24 hours after surgery, the right arm of the patient gradually warmed up and turned pink. The elbow and radial pulses were visible, and the fingers began to have feelings.
As of now, after more than 2 weeks of intensive care and intensive rehabilitation exercises, Mr. Trong has recovered and his right arm is gradually becoming better day by day.
“I am very happy that I did not lose my right arm. To me, my family, and my colleagues, this is indeed a miracle. It is such an unexpected success made possible thanks to the medical ethics, dedication, decisiveness, and skills in emergency response of the doctors and nurses at Vinmec Danang Hospital” – Mr. Trong emotionally confided when he was discharged from the hospital on November 29, 2019.
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