Dr. Jiang's Daily Adversities

The incident had happened in the emergency department, and Jiang Tingxu and Liao Jiayu were both doctors from A&E. Their testimonies might be biased.

The three of them were quick-witted. Deng Peng had gotten his junior’s cue and responded, “Sure, then let me brief you on aortic dissection. Its major cause is hypertension, or in simpler terms, high blood pressure. A great number of reports suggested that 70% of patients with aortic dissection were associated with high blood pressure. Inconsistent treatment, or uncontrolled high blood pressure, was the most important causation of this disease.”

“Secondly, atherosclerosis, Marfan syndrome, some other idiopathic diseases, arteritis, and intense exercise could also cause aortic dissection.”

The note-taking officer was dubious. “Marfan syndrome?”

Laymen wouldn’t have understood medical jargon, not to say ever heard of it.

Deng Peng smiled gently and nodded. “Yes, that’s right. Marfan syndrome is a connective tissue genetic disorder. It affects the limbs, fingers, and toes, causing them to be unusually tall and slender. It is often accompanied by abnormalities in the cardiovascular system,” he added, “oh, right. Pregnancy is also a high-risk factor for aortic dissection. It is related to hemodynamic stress in the aortic wall.”

Deng Peng’s skills at popularizing medical knowledge had caused astonishment among the police officers present. A female police officer, who was probably preparing for pregnancy, had felt a little uneasy after hearing the speech. She couldn’t resist the urge to ask, “You mean pregnancy would also cause aortic dissection?”

Was it that scary?

Deng Peng had realized he had frightened someone. He tried to clear his throat. “It’s just one of the probable risks. It’s safe to say it’s not even that scary. No matter what kind of critical illness it is, there would be early signs. If you are thorough, you would be able to completely avoid it.”

“How could I avoid it?”

“Ahem!”

The male police officer had a hacking cough. The female police officer fell silent in an instant. Then, the male police officer had spoken up for his colleague, “When we’re done here, you could consult the fellow doctors in private.”

“Okay.”

They returned to the main topic once again.

“Dr. Deng, other than the few possible causes that you had just mentioned, is there any other, for instance, possibility that Mr. Ni’s emergency might be caused by emotional stress?”

The male police officer had a trick up his sleeve. If Deng Peng had admitted to it, then Ms. Lan would be arrested on a murder charge. As expected, the police had strategies and tactics for extracting useful information from witnesses.

However, Deng Peng wasn’t ignorant—he was a top student at Peking University. He still was brainy.

“Officer, I could only say that I couldn’t rule out this possibility because the patient has long suffered from hypertension, and hypertension is naturally affected by emotional dampening. If the police would like to seek a more accurate answer, then you’ll need to hire a professional consultant for an evaluation.”

Deng Peng’s attestations were conclusive.

The male officer’s gaze had shifted to Ms. Lan, who was sitting on the other side. “Ms. Lan, what do you think of this?”

“Heh, say, officer, what do you mean exactly by that? Clearly, he asked for it. What does his illness have to do with me?”

Deng Peng was clever to have asked the police to seek a professional evaluation. It was difficult to determine who’s right or wrong.

To begin with, Mr. Ni had high blood pressure—this was an indisputable fact. And it was also accurate to say that high blood pressure would result in aortic dissection.

As the police had gathered statements from eyewitnesses in the hospital that morning, it was evident that Ms. Lan had made provocative speeches towards the Ni family. Everyone knew that patients with high blood pressure could not be maddened. Under a highly stressful condition, their blood pressure would spike, and the consequences would be unimaginable.

This was why no one would draw a conclusion on whether Ms. Lan’s provocative words were the cause of Mr. Ni’s aortic dissection. No one was 100% sure of the reason before an expert consultant had come up with a final evaluation report.

Just when Jiang Tingxu and the two had arrived at the station, the police had also received an official report from Ni Xiaona.