Chapter 65

Chapter 3, Episode 65: We Must Stop It (5)

"Cough, cough, why am I suddenly like this?"

An Tae-hwan's face contorted in pain as he coughed.

Only then did the rest of An Tae-hwan's family, except for me, start to show concern for him.

"Tae-hwan, where does it hurt?"

"From the looks of it, it seems like you caught a cold."

"Brother, you seemed fine until yesterday..."

"It's nothing. I guess running after a long time brought on a cold."

As the family worried, An Tae-hwan waved it off as if it were nothing.

The situation where An So-hui attempted to take her own life had just been resolved.

So he probably didn't want to worry his parents any further.

But he couldn't fool my eyes, those of a former thoracic surgeon.

His hand on his chest, as if it were uncomfortable.

His heavy breathing, even though it had been a while since he stopped running.

The redness and hives spreading from his neck.

An Tae-hwan's condition was not good. If left unchecked, who knew what might happen.

"Senior, you shouldn't pretend to be fine when you're not. Let's go to the hospital quickly."

"I'm a bit uncomfortable, but it's not bad enough to go to the hospital."

"From what I can see, it looks like anaphylaxis? Senior, don't you have peach anaphylaxis?"

Anaphylaxis.

A systemic shock caused by an allergic reaction.

It can end with minor symptoms, but in some cases, it can be fatal.

When I first met An Tae-hwan in front of the apartment complex.

I remember the pieces of peach stuck to the corner of his mouth.

If peach is the trigger for anaphylaxis, then An Tae-hwan's symptoms make sense.

"Lee Min, I know you're the top student, but are you already trying to teach me?"

An Tae-hwan laughed as if it were ridiculous.

"Anaphylaxis isn't something you can come back from after dying. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because I don't have an allergy to peaches. I can eat yellow and white peaches, and I've never had a reaction after eating them."

"..."

"That means it's not anaphylaxis. I just got tired from running."

An Tae-hwan was confident.

Since it's his own body, he would know best if he has an allergy to peaches.

But I couldn't back down easily.

The symptoms his body was showing were clearly typical of anaphylaxis.

It was a stretch to say that running suddenly brought on a cold.

However, I couldn't claim that my diagnosis was 100% correct.

If he doesn't have a peach allergy, how could he have peach anaphylaxis?

"Senior, do you have any pollen allergies or other allergic reactions?"

"No. Never in my life."

An Tae-hwan shook his head firmly.

As our opinions clashed, I felt anxious.

The redness and hives on An Tae-hwan's neck had spread to his shoulders.

Despite the worsening symptoms, An Tae-hwan kept insisting he was fine.

If this continued, he might need an ambulance.

"Let me ask one more question. Have you ever exercised after eating peaches?"

"Eaten peaches and exercised? What kind of nonsense is that?"

"Just answer if you have or not."

Startled by my rough tone, An Tae-hwan blinked.

"I don't know why you're acting like this, but no. I probably haven't."

"Then, Senior, it could be food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis."

"What? Food-dependent what anaphylaxis?"

"Food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis."

I spat out the long diagnosis in one breath.

The world of anaphylaxis is vast.

Commonly known to be caused by pollen, bee stings, or eating the wrong food.

But there are countless other factors that can trigger allergic reactions.

Anaphylaxis caused by changes in body temperature.

Anaphylaxis with unknown causes, and so on.

Among these, the anaphylaxis I suspect An Tae-hwan is suffering from is food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis.

To explain it simply:

Eating peaches is fine.

But you shouldn't exercise after eating peaches.

It's a form where anaphylaxis manifests after consuming food and then moving your body.

Of course, it's a very rare form of anaphylaxis.

I know about this anaphylaxis because I read a research paper by a close allergy specialist friend in my previous life.

"Is there such a type of anaphylaxis in the world?"

An Tae-hwan showed a look of disbelief after hearing my explanation.

An Tae-hwan's parents and An So-hui didn't understand the explanation at all.

"There aren't many papers on it, and it's still under research."

"How would a pre-med student like you know about it?"

"I'm a genius, so I've read a lot of medical papers since high school. Let's stop arguing and go to the hospital."

"..."

"Does it really make sense that a cold would cause redness and hives?"

I forcibly pulled An Tae-hwan's arm and left the rooftop.

There was no time to argue.

If anaphylaxis worsens to the point of respiratory distress and hypotension, it could become irreversible.

We needed to get to the hospital as soon as possible.

Whether it was because he finally gave in to my extensive medical knowledge or because his anaphylaxis had worsened and he was losing strength, An Tae-hwan followed me obediently.

* * *

We took a taxi to the nearest university hospital.

A few minutes ago, all the attention was on An So-hui's extreme actions, but now the situation had changed.

An Tae-hwan's parents and An So-hui were now worried about An Tae-hwan.

I felt the same way.

'This is not easy.'

Watching An Tae-hwan's parents register at the emergency room, I shook my head.

I thought all I had to do was prevent An So-hui's extreme actions.

But what do you know?

After resolving the important issue, An Tae-hwan caused trouble.

He suffered from a rare condition called food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis.

I'm not sure, but in my previous life, An Tae-hwan probably didn't know about food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis.

He probably never had a reason to eat peaches and then engage in intense exercise.

Through this incident, I realized anew:

Even if I had regressed, saving lives is a continuous path of thorns.

You never know when a variable might suddenly appear.

But to prevent such crises, I regressed from my previous life. I knew to some extent what would happen in the future, and my once weak mental strength had become as strong as steel.

I knew the value of human life and how to take care of people.

Outstanding predictive abilities and extensive medical knowledge.

Strong mental fortitude.

The help of people I have connections with.

With these three things, I could overcome any trials that lay ahead.

"Senior, are you okay?"

I turned my gaze to An Tae-hwan.

As time passed, his complexion became even paler. His speech had decreased, and his heavy breathing spoke for him.

If we hadn't come to the hospital and he had held out until the end, a disaster would have certainly occurred.

"No."

An Tae-hwan answered in a voice that sounded like he was dying.

"Patient An Tae-hwan, please come in."

At the nurse's call, An Tae-hwan's family and I entered the emergency room.

The emergency room was in chaos.

Doctors and nurses were performing CPR at two beds.

Squeak.

Squeak.

Each time they performed chest compressions, the bed made a sharp sound like chalk on a blackboard.

The patient's body jolted with the use of a defibrillator.

"Hey, Lee Myung-ho, can you do the intubation?"

"Yes, sir."

'There must be a T.A. (Traffic Accident) patient.'

I sighed in sympathy as I looked at the patients being treated.

As we approached the examination table, a doctor in a white coat greeted us.

The doctor was a young man in his late 20s, still with a youthful look, wearing glasses.

The name on his coat was Dr. So Ji-sung.

The lack of a specialty indicated that he was an intern.

With the residents busy with traffic accident patients, the intern had stepped in to treat patients.

A sentence came to mind:

"Don't go to the emergency room in March."

There's a reason for this saying.

In university hospitals, interns start their formal training in early March.

Of course, it could be unfair for the interns.

It's their first time working in the field after finishing medical school, so it's impossible to treat patients as skillfully as experienced doctors.

However, it's also understandable for patients to feel uneasy.

"Patient, what brings you here?"

"I came because of anaphylaxis symptoms. I've been feeling unwell since eating peaches."

I explained on behalf of the suffering An Tae-hwan.

I deliberately didn't mention food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis to avoid confusing the intern.

"Do you know about anaphylaxis? Have you ever been to the hospital with these symptoms before?"

The intern seemed quite surprised when I mentioned the diagnosis of anaphylaxis.

"I'm not, but I'm a medical student."

"Oh, nice to meet you. Let's start with an examination."

The intern began asking about symptoms and examining An Tae-hwan.

Soon, he checked his temperature, pulse, and blood pressure.

Why am I more anxious than the intern, who is doing the examination?

Probably because I'm worried that even spoon-fed anaphylaxis treatment might be too much for him.

To put it another way, the intern is like a baby bird.

Just out of the nest, it has to start flapping its wings on its own.

I, with my extensive experience as a thoracic surgeon, am like a mother bird anxiously watching over the intern.

"The redness and hives around the neck are severe, and there's a slight sign of hypotension."

"..."

"The most likely diagnosis is anaphylaxis, but we can't rule out the possibility of acute urticaria and acute myocardial infarction. Let's start with an ECG and a chest X-ray."

I couldn't hide my disappointment at the intern's lengthy explanation.

Why is he fumbling at the goal line after doing so well?

The intern clearly lacked confidence in his diagnosis.

Anaphylaxis is diagnosed based on clinical symptoms, not through tests.

His plan seemed to be to rule out all other conditions through tests before diagnosing anaphylaxis.

This seemed to go beyond being cautious to being overly timid.

As a former thoracic surgeon, I couldn't be satisfied with the intern's extremely passive approach.

I also didn't want to watch An Tae-hwan's condition worsen while waiting for tests.

The problem was how to persuade him...

The intern wouldn't easily listen to me, a mere medical student.

He was a fully licensed doctor, after all.

The situation wasn't ideal, but I had a weapon: my political and acting skills honed since childhood.

'I can use this person.'

I spotted a man approaching us and inwardly rejoiced.

The name 'Emergency Medicine' was clearly written on his coat.

"Doctor, if anaphylaxis is the most likely diagnosis, shouldn't we start with epinephrine?"

I deliberately spoke loudly so the doctor could hear.

"We can't rule out other conditions lightly."

The intern's firm expression.

"But it all started after eating peaches."

"We don't know if peaches are the allergen. We should prepare for the worst."

"But the patient is in so much pain."

"Yu, what's going on?"

My loud voice drew the attention of an emergency medicine resident, who approached us.

Everything was going according to plan.

"It's nothing, just examining a patient, but the family keeps saying it looks like anaphylaxis..."

"Excuse me for a moment, family members."

The resident carefully examined An Tae-hwan and then frowned.

He leaned in to whisper to the intern.

"Hey, do you want him to die? It's anaphylaxis."

"How can you not diagnose it better than the family? Give an intramuscular injection of epinephrine and start an IV with 0.9% NS (saline solution)."