Page 20 of Paging Dr. Breakup
Dr. Yang said, “Describe to me what you see in terms of the vasculature between those two clamps.”
Deirdre dabbed with a sterile swab while Calvin examined the blood vessel.
“Femoral artery is in two pieces.” He pulled gently on the damaged vessel edges with forceps. “There’s some play in the vessel.”
“We can work with that.” Dr. Yang’s words seemed to infuse hope in the situation. “What you’ll want to do is place interrupted sutures to reapproximate the ends of the vessel. It’s either that or a graft, which I don’t recommend attempting out there. Can you do the primary repair?”
Calvin tugged the vessel edges, and they met in the middle. “Yes, I think I can do it.”
“First, release the lower clamp and shoot some heparinized saline down the distal vessel to keep it open and reduce clots,” Dr. Yang said.
A few moves later and Calvin looked up. “Done and reclamped.”
“Blood’s here, Doc,” Clyde said. “I’m running the first unit wide open and the second over an hour if that sounds okay.”
“Yes, great idea.” He continued to examine the damaged artery.
Deirdre tried to anticipate his movements with retractors and gauze. “How else can I help you?” she murmured.
“You’re doing so well.” Lines crinkled at the edges of his gray eyes as he glanced at her. “Does this count as our first date?” He pitched his voice low.
A brief wave of warmth flowed from her toes to her head as she resisted checking to see if anyone noticed. “Ha. Hope not.”
Turning back to the tray, he selected a suture, loaded the needle on the driver, and placed the first stitch. Sweat glistened on his forehead. With a few flicks of the instruments, he tied a knot and gingerly tugged on it.
The suture held.
Deirdre threw up a thanks to the heavens and snipped the suture.
For the next fifteen minutes, Calvin painstakingly placed fine, closely spaced sutures, tying each one individually.
Once he was done, he said, “I think we’re good. Do I need additional stitches for reinforcement?”
Dr. Yang shook her head. “If you feel like you have a solid line of suture, then release the distal clamp slightly and see if the repair holds under a small amount of backflow.”
The room was dead silent except for the beeps of the monitor and the sounds of the ventilator keeping Tuli alive while Calvin worked. He carefully opened the clamp, and the vessel slowly expanded. No oozing around the suture site. No pooling in the surgical field.
Had this amazing physician actually repaired a femoral artery at the bedside?
Deirdre stared at the vessel as if she could hold it together by sheer force of will.
“Now for the moment of truth,” Dr. Yang said. “Release the proximal vascular clamp.”
“I really don’t want to do that,” Calvin said in a droll tone.
Deirdre snorted but gently rested her gloved hand on his. “You’ve got this.”
Calvin took a deep breath. “Here goes nothing.”
Chapter Eight
Cal slipped twouncharacteristically shaking fingers in the rings of the clamp on the femoral artery above his repair and slowly released pressure.Please work, he prayed. Worse came to worst, he could re-clamp everything and hope they could get Tuli to Fairbanks in under twenty-four hours. They’d be racing the clock against permanent tissue damage and an entire blizzard, but at least he had a plan B, even if it semi-sucked.
The artery below the clamp filled with blood, even with the tourniquet still applied on Tuli’s upper thigh.
Then a pulse became visible. Each jump of the vessel sent a jolt of adrenaline through his own circulation.
Hold. Hold.
