Shanghai and Ningbo surgeons help drinker with 'wee problem'
The two branches of Renji Hospital in Shanghai and Ningbo in neighboring Zhejiang Province have carried out an emergency surgery on a patient with ruptured bladder.
The patient had been drinking alcohol with friends and hadn't been to the toilet. His bladder ruptured after a fall.
He went to Renji Hospital's Ningbo branch the next day with extreme belly pain.
Doctors conducted a detailed check and CT scan, detecting it was bladder rupture, and urine had entered the abdominal cavity, a life-threatening condition requiring urgent surgery.
The Ningbo branch contacted Renji's headquarters in Shanghai and two medical experts rushed to Ningbo for the surgery. Medics in Ningbo also started relevant preparation.
During the surgery, doctors found a 3.5-centimeter opening in the bladder, and checked all other organs to ensure their good condition.
Doctors repaired the bladder, with the entire procedure only lasting one-and-half hours.
The patient's pain vanished the next day, and he was able to urinate as normal.
According to Dr Yang Guoliang, director of the urinary surgery department of Renji's Ningbo branch, the bladder is like a balloon when full. It can rupture if it undergoes force.
"The bladder rupture is mainly seen in patients who fail to go to the toilet in time after drinking a lot of alcohol and then falling or being bumped in the lower belly," Yang said. "Do not drink too much, and do not hold urine after drinking."