Medical disputes happen everywhere. In Japan, everything is solved with an apology. If an apology doesn't work, you have to go to court, but medical dispute lawsuits generally have a low success rate and are difficult to win in Japan.
Especially if the opposing party is a University Hospital, don't even dream of a Doctor risking their future to testify in court.
Banishing someone to the frontier is a common tactic used by University Hospitals.
The hospital where the deceased was admitted before his death was a private general hospital in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo. After the deceased was admitted, it was discovered that he had kidney disease. After his urethra was blocked, a local anesthetic nephrostomy was planned.
However, no one expected the deceased to die in the hospital like this.
"That's right. Tanshoto's kidney disease was not sufficient to cause death. The cause of death was not related to the kidneys or other organs."
The test reports in Sakamoto Makoto's hand, combined with the autopsy records, all indicated that Tanshoto's cause of death was not related to his kidneys, but it was definitely related to this local anesthetic surgery.
"Tanshoto had upper ureteral stones on the right side and severe hydronephrosis in the right kidney, with multiple stones. However, from a pathological perspective, the kidney disease was not sufficient to cause death. The problem lies in the treatment process."
After showing the test data to Nakatado Kei, Sakamoto Makoto came in front of Aki Tomoya and explained it to him.
"During the autopsy, laryngeal edema, pulmonary edema, and obvious cyanosis of the lips and nail beds of both fingers were found. Then there's the test data: in the cardiac blood, the allergy indicators were measured. The MCT concentration was 25.80 ng/mL, and the total IgE was 1 L. Both values exceeded the normal range."
Laryngeal edema, pulmonary edema, eosinophilia (which Sakamoto Makoto didn't mention), and the mentioned allergy indicators in the cardiac blood are all characteristics of an allergic reaction.
The normal value for MCT is less than 13.5, and total IgE is less than 100. The deceased's values for both were above normal.
Based on the autopsy and the three tests, mechanical injury and death caused by kidney disease can be ruled out.
"Dr. Sakamoto, was it Lidocaine allergy, or Lidocaine poisoning?"
Aki Tomoya looked at the data displayed on the tablet.
The problem occurred during the surgical treatment process. Combined with the hospital's explanation of death due to anaphylactic shock, the investigation should focus on the medications used in this local anesthetic surgery.
Lidocaine was indeed found in the toxicology test.
This local anesthetic medication, widely used in clinical practice, can also be lethal if used in excess. Medication is also a type of poison; it will always have an impact on the body.
"Lidocaine poisoning can be ruled out. Based on comprehensive analysis, the cause of death is the same as the hospital's explanation: death due to acute allergic reaction, which is anaphylactic shock."
So, the hospital didn't hide the true cause of death of the deceased?
"Lidocaine allergy, that's quite rare. However, Lidocaine is widely used precisely because allergic reactions are uncommon..."
Dr. Toukairin sighed.
How should one describe this kind of thing? It's like walking on a main road and a rock falls from the sky and hits your head.
"I wonder if the bereaved family will accept our explanation..."
Aki Tomoya clicked his tongue. An allergic reaction, and then dying directly in the hospital. Most people indeed wouldn't be able to accept it.
Similarly, the word 'allergy' might sound insignificant, but after seeing a deceased person firsthand, it's terrifying to think about.
However, UDI is only responsible for autopsy and investigation. The medical lawsuit is a matter between the hospital and the bereaved family. The investigation results are only for reference.
And now, they can start writing the report.
Regardless of whether the bereaved family can accept it, UDI must inform them of the results.
As for whether they will sue the hospital later, that is not their concern.
"Dr. Nakadō, the attending Doctor of the deceased, Tanshoto, wants to see you. Are you free?"
"What?"
The deceased's attending Doctor specifically visited UDI today.
That person came for the cause of the deceased's death.
The three members of the Chutang Gang went to the reception room next door and saw a man in his forties, wearing a suit.
"Tanshoto was my patient. On the afternoon of the 15th, a local anesthetic surgery was performed. An abnormality occurred during the puncture process. Upon discovering this, I immediately injected him with 2mg of adrenaline and 10mg of Dexamethasone. Although Tanshoto was sent to the ICU for further resuscitation, unfortunately, resuscitation was unsuccessful. Our conclusion is death due to Lidocaine anaphylactic shock."
Did he want to say that the surgical procedure was normal, and even the subsequent resuscitation after the abnormality occurred, meant the hospital was not at fault?
"If Tanshoto's family wants to sue me or the hospital, with the pre-operative consent form and video recording, it would just be a waste of effort."
After saying this, the man sighed, as if wanting UDI to relay the message to the bereaved family.
"We are only responsible for autopsy and investigation. Other matters are not our concern."
Nakatado Kei replied impolitely.
UDI indeed holds a crucial position in this medical dispute because the bereaved family's advantage in the lawsuit entirely depends on the autopsy report provided by UDI.
However, the truth is, the hospital didn't hide any truth or conceal the real cause of death. The people at UDI also know very well that this lawsuit will be difficult to win.
"The bereaved family doesn't want to listen to our hospital's explanation and keeps suing the hospital at the drop of a hat. It's giving us a headache."
He tried to make the grief-stricken bereaved family understand, but it was not easy to get their forgiveness. Otherwise, the body wouldn't have been sent here.
However, the words of this attending Doctor sounded a bit cold.
He only came here to ask UDI to relay the message about not wasting effort, and it wasn't clear what his true feelings were after his patient's death.
"They say the hospital could have avoided such a tragedy, but we Doctors aren't gods, and we did our best to resuscitate. People die in hospitals every day, and Lidocaine allergy itself is very rare! Furthermore, our pre-operative consent form also explained this. I hope you can tell those two to calm down. There's no benefit in suing the hospital."
The deceased's attending Doctor finished speaking, bit his lip, and suddenly became somewhat emotional.
"Excuse me, I apologize for bothering you today."
The man lowered his head, stood up, and left the reception room, seeming not to want to stay here for long.
Nakatado Kei impatiently snorted and then left the room, finding it boring.
In the reception room, Aki Tomoya, Sakamoto Makoto, and the Director looked at each other.
"But to say the hospital is completely blameless is impossible. The court should accept the case, but as that person said, the possibility of winning is too small."
Kamikura Yasuo sighed.
Based on the conclusions drawn from the current investigation, it's uncertain if the bereaved family will accept it, as they are still in anger over the loss of their loved one.
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