Chapter 405 - Mayo Clinic (1/2)

Zheng Ren busied himself with the patients that came into Sea City General Hospital, the small hospital that was insignificant in the world of academic medicine.

At the same moment, something was about to transpire in the Mayo Clinic Headquarters in Rochester, Minnesota.

The 38-year-old Mu Tao was flipping through articles and writing up his daily surgical journal.

After leaving Imperial Capital and returning to Shenzhen City, he felt incompetent.

To be the best surgeon, he had to go to the best hospital and receive the most advanced medical training the world had to offer.

He still had the fiery pa.s.sion of youth in him.

Mu Tao had spoken to Old Wu about his aspirations and the old professor was supportive.

Old Wu had friends in the international medical community. He managed to obtain a six-month international exchange program for Mu Tao in the world-renowned Mayo Clinic.

It was only six months but Mu Tao was very thankful for the opportunity.

When he first arrived at the Mayo Clinic, he began learning enthusiastically despite the jetlag.

Canada’s Montreal General Hospital was in the top five hospitals, but Mayo Clinic was ranked first worldwide.

They could compete with Montreal General Hospital in any field, even neurosurgery.

Here, Mu Tao was exposed to all sorts of advanced medical facilities and medical theories. The doctors were knowledgeable and the surgeries they performed were complex and holistic.

In the field of interventional surgery, Mayo Clinic was also ranked first.

They were especially well-known for their TIPS procedure for the treatment of decompensated cirrhosis-induced gastric varices, portal hypertension, and ascites.

One of the best minds in the field of interventional surgery once said the techniques used in Mayo Clinic were five to ten years ahead of time.

After witnessing first-hand, Mu Tao concurred with the a.s.sessment.

Sometimes he even believed five to ten years was an understatement.

Mu Tao was regarded as China’s best technical interventional surgeon and he carried that reputation with pride.

When he saw the TIPS surgery performed at Mayo Clinic, his pride and ego were shattered.

In Shenzhen City, Mu Tao’s TIPS puncture attempts were always limited to a dozen or so and the success rate of the surgery was as high as 85%.

Even Wu Hais.h.i.+ was amazed by his disciple’s accomplishment.

With a stellar track record in performing TIPS surgery and his sharp instincts, Wu Hais.h.i.+ had called Mu Tao a prodigy.

Mu Tao was a talented surgeon, no doubt.

Here in Mayo Clinic, the TIPS surgeries that Mu Tao witnessed all had less than ten puncture attempts.

The challenging blind puncture was also an aspect Mayo Clinic was looking into in hopes of a swifter and less damaging TIPS surgery.

The current procedure in all Mayo Clinic branches was to place a specialized guide wire in the portal vein to map out the general area. This reduced the chances of a total miss when performing the puncture.

The method had already been discussed publicly in a journal article.

Reading it in an article was nothing compared to witnessing it live. The additional guide wire significantly improved workflow efficiency.

The TIPS procedure could be completed with five or fewer puncture attempts and the surgery success rate was as high as 95%. The post-surgery hepatic encephalopathy incidence rate was as low as 30% with this method.

These statistics were unbeatable.

Mu Tao believed the crown jewel of interventional surgery had been cleanly plucked by Mayo Clinic.

Learn, research, operate. Mu Tao kept a steady pattern every day while he was in America.

He had even forgone sleep, taking only 4-hour daily naps.

Mu Tao only had six months and found himself running out of time. There were too many things to learn and too many surgeries to perform.

Every day, there were countless dignitaries and rich businessmen who stopped by Mayo Clinic for a consultation or check-up.