Author: Du Weiwei
Translated by: Wu Xia
After 28 days of treatment in the intensive care unit, 57-year-old Ms.Li, who was critically ill with the new pneumonia, "lived again". On February 4, her family member confirmed that she had met the discharge criteria. She was discharged from the Department of Intensive Medicine of Wuhan University Renmin Hospital and sent home for isolation and recovery. The previous day, a 62-year-old woman, who had also suffered from respiratory failure due to new pneumonia, has recovered in the second ward of the Intensive Medicine Department of the hospital.
On January 6 this year, Ms. Li, who suffered from chills and fever for 9 days and had a fever of 39 ° C, was sent to the Emergency Department of Wuhan University Renmin Hospital for treatment. A series of examinations showed that her lungs changed with viral pneumonia. After receiving antipyretic and anti-infection treatments, her symptoms were not significantly relieved. Due to dyspnea, the high-flow oxygen saturation could not be maintained normally, and she was admitted to the hospital's Critical Medical Department that night.
Professor Yu Zhui, the deputy director of the Department of Critical Care Medicine, led the team and immediately investigated the condition of Li. At that time, the epidemic of novel coronavirus pneumonia had not yet fully broken out, but Professor Yu Zhui had previously consulted some patients with unexplained viral pneumonia inside and outside the hospital, especially with the presence of family clustering. There may be human-to-human transmission. Based on this, Li was highly suspected of novel coronavirus pneumonia, and was urgently transferred to the department's negative-pressure ward for isolation and treatment. At the same time, all medical staff were required to strengthen protection and prevent infection.
Ms. Li’s condition is progressed faster than everyone expected. After entering the Critical Medicine Department for only 3 hours, her breathing difficulties continued to increas, and her oxygen saturation fell to about 70%, facing respiratory failure death at any time. Professor Yu Zhui made an immediate decision and instructed the doctor on duty to perform intubation of the trachea urgently, and the ventilator assisted in breathing, which temporarily saved her life.
Subsequent further examinations revealed that Li suffered from various basic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and obesity, and had a history of liver cirrhosis for more than 30 years, which brought great difficulties to treatment. Professor Yu Zhui led the medical team to carry out careful diagnosis and treatment, continued to give her anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and hormonal treatments, and used gamma globulin to improve immunity, nutritional support, and maintain the stability of the internal environment to stabilize her condition.
At this time, Professor Yu Zhui had been ordered to reinforce Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital on January 18, but he was still concerned about the critically ill patients, and asked the treatment group Dr. Yao Lan and others to pay close attention to the condition and find a way to find the cause. On January 22, after the first batch of new coronavirus nucleic acid tests were carried out in the laboratory of Wuhan University Renmin Hospital, Ms. Li received this test for the first time and the result was positive.
Since then, Mother Li's condition has improved day by day. At the end of January, she was able to eat on her own, she was conscious, her vital signs were stable, and her lung infection was basically absorbed. After two nucleic acid tests were negative, medical staff determined that she had reached the discharge standard. On February 4, the family took her from the intensive care department to continue her recuperation, and ordered her to strengthen self-isolation while at home.
Looking back on Li's diagnosis and treatment experience, Professor Yu Zhui said that the careful treatment and judgment of the diagnosis and treatment team at that time not only saved Li’s life but also prevented the medical staff from being infected.
Chen, 62, is also a patient with severe new pneumonia, but her symptoms are different from Li. On January 15, Chen who had "intermittent fever with nausea and vomiting for 8 days" was admitted to Department of Gastroenterology, Wuhan University Renmin Hospital. A CT scan of the chest suggested that her lungs were infected and may be caused by viral pneumonia. Respiratory experts at the hospital recommended consultations and strengthen isolation.
The intensive care medical team led by Professor Wei Jie, director of the intensive medicine department, and the head nurse Tian Dan's medical care team, gave her high-flow oxygen therapy in a timely manner. With the careful care of medical staff, her fever, chest tightness, and dyspnea gradually relieved. On February 2 and 3, the new coronavirus nucleic acid RNA test was negative twice, and a chest CT scan revealed that the infection was absorbed. She was discharged on February 3.
"Thanks to the doctors, nurses, and Renmin Hospital. I was dead, but they saved me!" Before leaving the hospital, Chen repeated again and again.
According to Professor Wei Jie, from the current diagnosis and treatment experience, the vast majority of patients with new coronavirus infection are of the common type, and most of the critically ill are elderly patients with underlying diseases. She emphasized that while the public attaches great importance to the epidemic of new pneumonia, we should eliminate unnecessary panic.
