Chapter 898 Parasitic Embryo
Li San Niang naturally first read the medical records about Feng Niang that Wang Yue had kept. After reading them, she already had several guesses in her mind.
At this moment, looking at Feng Niang who was being held in Gan Niangzi's arms without crying or making a fuss, Li San Niang smiled at little Feng Niang, and then she looked at Gan Niangzi.
"I am Li Mingfang, the head of the Maternity and Child Health Clinic."
"Come, put the child down, let me see him."
Gan Niangzi was so nervous that she couldn't speak at all. She was like a wooden doll, obediently doing whatever Li San Niang said.
After washing her hands again, Li San Niang took Feng Niang's pulse as she sat down and extended her wrist.
Having practiced medicine for many years, Li San Niang had long since mastered the art of medicine. She wore only a faint smile on her face, making it impossible for anyone to guess what she was thinking or predict the condition of the patients she treated.
Gan Niangzi's heart clenched. She stared at Li San Niang's face, but all she saw was a faint smile; she couldn't discern anything else.
"Come on, take the baby and lie down on the bed. Let me touch your belly."
When Li San Niang was performing an abdominal palpation on Feng Niang, she naturally activated her X-ray vision. She looked down through the layers of skin and discovered that it was the least likely of the several diseases she had predicted: a parasitic twin!
What is a parasitic twin?
As the name suggests, it means that one or more incomplete fetuses are parasitized in a part of a complete fetus. The most common sites are the retroperitoneum and abdominal cavity, which manifest as a gradually enlarging abdominal mass.
In layman's terms, it can be called fetus in fetus, which is a parasitic twin phenomenon that occurs when twins are developing in the mother's womb.
Therefore, the parasitic twin and the host are like twins or sisters.
The reason for this phenomenon, from a genetic perspective, is that within the mother's womb, a stronger fetus, in order to compete for nutrients, absorbs or "devours" one or more weaker fetuses, enveloping the weaker embryo within its own body, thus forming a parasitic twin. (The above definitions are from *Pediatric Surgery*.)
Therefore, the bulging belly of Fengniang is caused by her twin sister growing up.
In modern society, the parasitic fetus would naturally be removed completely through surgery.
But now, how can we save Fengniang's life?
Li San Niang was pondering this question, and at the same time, she was also thinking about how to explain Feng Niang's illness to Gan Niangzi.
After all, Buddhism and Taoism were prevalent in the Tang Dynasty at that time. If we directly told Lady Gan that there was an underdeveloped parasitic fetus in her daughter's belly, even if Lady Gan loved her child very much, she would inevitably think of ghosts and monsters.
Li San Niang reached out and touched Feng Niang's head, then told Song Fuling to take Feng Niang outside, not far, just to the entrance of the tent.
Li San Niang then gestured for Gan Niangzi to sit down. Before Li San Niang could speak, Gan Niangzi mustered her courage and cautiously asked, "Doctor Li, is there any hope for my Feng Niang's illness?"
Faced with those tearful eyes, how could Li San Niang possibly utter the words "hopeless"?
“There is something growing inside Fengniang’s belly. This thing will grow as Fengniang grows. Just as Doctor Wang said, the prescriptions from the doctors that the lady has seen in the past were all for the purpose of treating Fengniang’s loss of appetite and excessive sleepiness.”
To completely cure this disease, one must seek help from a surgeon.
Lady Gan had certainly heard of the surgeon, after all, the news of the great victory in the national war was a hot topic in Chang'an last year.
After that, news spread of how many soldiers' lives the surgeons had saved on the battlefield.
At that time, news of suture techniques for treating ulcers also spread and became known to the public.
Therefore, when Li San Niang said this, Gan Niangzi already understood something.
"Doctor Li means to... remove that strange thing from Fengniang's stomach?"
Gan Niangzi stared wide-eyed, her hands clenched tightly at her waist. Although she understood what Li San Niang meant, this was something Gan Niangzi could not accept.
After all, if Cheng Ding was wounded in the abdomen by a sword, even if a surgeon stitched it up, he would only be able to survive after he had survived the high fever.
But Fengniang is only six years old!
How could such a young child possibly survive?
When Li San Niang saw Gan Niangzi's expression, she knew that Gan Niangzi was thinking the worst. She quickly said, "This thing definitely needs to be taken out, otherwise it will grow inside Feng Niang's belly, which is not good for Feng Niang."
However, Fengniang is still young, and this thing is not very big. If medicine can make it shrink on its own, it can be removed when Fengniang is older, without endangering her life.
only……"
Before Li San Niang could finish speaking, Gan Niangzi stood up excitedly, "Doctor Li, are you saying that my Feng Niang can still live?"
Is it true?
Is my Fengniang really still alive?
"Waaah, thank you so much, Dr. Li! Dr. Li, I'm begging you! Please save my Fengniang! Waaah!"
Li San Niang was quick enough; before she could even fully extend her hand to help the person up, Gan Niangzi had already knelt down and kowtowed to her.
What are you doing?
Get up quickly, get up quickly, get up quickly!
Neither Li San Niang nor Wang Yue could pull Gan Niangzi up from the ground. It was Qiu Xiang who couldn't stand it anymore. She used a clever trick and pulled Gan Niangzi up from the ground in one go.
After they sat down again, Li San Niang kindly handed her a handkerchief, which Gan Niangzi took with great embarrassment and used to wipe the tears from her face.
"I haven't finished speaking yet. I'm not a god, just an ordinary mortal who knows some medical skills."
I can only offer you a suggestion; I can't say for sure what the final outcome will be.
"I know, I'd be content if there were any way. Whether it can be cured or not depends on God's mercy."
Seeing that Gan Niangzi was clear-headed and emotionally stable, Li San Niang immediately told her about her treatment plan.
"Ordinary medicines can only alleviate the burden this thing brings to the body, but the medicine I want to use is one that aims to shrink this thing from the root."
Therefore, the medicine I used was poison.
Yes, Li San Niang decided to poison Feng Niang!
"I'm going to poison Fengniang, little by little, and check on her every now and then. If the poison can stop that thing from growing, that's a good thing, and then the poison will be cleared."
Then, repeating this process little by little, over several years, until Fengniang is old enough, the thing can be removed.
If the poison is the right remedy, it might heal without needing any external medicine.
but! "
The first part was fine; Gan Niangzi's smile was almost showing when she heard Li San Niang say "but," and her heart jumped from her chest to her throat again.
"However, this poison is still harmful to the body. Even if the poison can be cleared afterward, it is still bad for the body."
"In that case, it will inevitably shorten Feng Niang's lifespan, and this poison is also detrimental to her offspring."
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