Top-tier doctoral supervisor, reborn as a first-year graduate student in standardized residency trai

Zhao Guofeng was a little taken aback.

"Cerebrospinal fluid? Is there a problem?"

Gu Lin did not answer immediately, because even he himself had only vaguely grasped a clue at this moment.

But it was this loose thread that caused him to feel an increasingly strong unease.

"I'd like to go back to my office and look at the medical records first."

The medical records were quickly retrieved, showing the first hospitalization, the second hospitalization, and the third hospitalization.

All the cerebrospinal fluid tests were neatly arranged on the computer screen, and several department heads gathered around.

Gu Lin slid the mouse, his eyes quickly scanning over each piece of data.

Cerebrospinal fluid pressure, cell count, protein, glucose, chloride, pathogen detection...

The more he looked, the more his brows furrowed.

A doctor standing nearby couldn't help but ask:

"Did you find anything?"

Gu Lin didn't say anything, but simply pulled up several of the reports together and zoomed in.

The next second, the head of the rheumatology and immunology department suddenly gasped.

"Wait, this protein..."

Zhao Guofeng saw it too, and his eyes suddenly darkened.

The initial examination showed a slight increase in cerebrospinal fluid protein.

The second examination showed that the temperature continued to rise.

The third test showed that the level was still elevated.

But strangely, the white blood cell count was never particularly high.

It doesn't resemble infectious encephalitis, nor does it resemble typical autoimmune encephalitis.

This result is very strange.

Gu Lin slowly sat up straight, and countless memories began to surge through his mind.

In his previous life, he had heard a case study shared while attending an international rheumatology conference abroad.

The patient was also a child, who also experienced recurrent fever, convulsions, uveitis, and oral ulcers, and was eventually diagnosed with neurobehçet's disease.

But what truly propelled the article to the top of the journal was not Behcet's disease itself, but rather the research team's later discovery that the child had a specific gene mutation that would lead to an exceptionally dangerous disease.

It has an earlier onset age, more severe damage to the nervous system, and may even present with many symptoms that are not typical of Behçet's disease.

That name suddenly surfaced from the depths of my memory.

Gu Lin's pupils contracted slightly, and his heart began to beat faster.

Beside him, Zhao Guofeng had already begun arranging follow-up examinations.

"Contact the rheumatology and immunology department first, do the acupuncture test, check HLA-B51, and then have an ophthalmology check-up again."

The ward bustled with activity again, but Gu Lin remained seated in his chair, motionless.

He suddenly realized that if his guess was true, then many of Tangtang's seemingly inexplicable symptoms could be explained.

Why did the disease begin at age seven? Why did it progress so rapidly? Why was the nervous system so severely affected? Why are the symptoms not entirely the same as typical Behcet's disease?

Because she may not have had ordinary Behcet's disease from the beginning.

Thinking of this, Gu Lin suddenly spoke.

"Director Zhao."

Zhao Guofeng turned his head, his gaze questioning.

"Um?"

Gu Lin paused for two seconds, then finally said:

"Could we do a genetic test?"

Several directors looked at him at the same time, their eyes filled with surprise.

Zhao Guofeng frowned, his tone somewhat puzzled.

"Genetic testing?"

Why?

Gu Lin knew that he couldn't say too much right now because he had no evidence, so he could only try to be tactful.

"Her age of onset was too young, and the disease progressed too quickly, which is quite different from typical cases. I suspect that there may be a genetic background involved."

The air was silent for a few seconds before the head of the rheumatology and immunology department suddenly spoke:

That makes sense.

Zhao Guofeng was taken aback and turned to look at him. The latter pushed up his glasses and became serious.

"Actually, I was just thinking about this too."

"Childhood neurogenic benign paroxysmal positional encephalopathy is rare to begin with, and it is even rarer to develop at age seven. If there is indeed a special genetic background, many things can be explained."

"Moreover, if the genetic test result is negative, it means that our assumptions are most likely wrong, and we have to start all over again."

After he finished speaking, his tone suddenly became more forceful.

"But if it's positive... that means we may have discovered a rare, even previously unreported, case of a special subtype of neuro-Behçet's disease in children."

"And the value of such cases far exceeds simply diagnosing a patient."

There was a knock on the doctor's office door, and a nurse's voice came from outside.

"Doctor, patient in bed 7 has woken up and is insisting on seeing the brother who treated her."

"Okay, we'll be right there."

*

As soon as Gu Lin reached the door of the ward, he heard a gentle voice coming from inside. Tangtang was holding an old rabbit doll and listening obediently to her mother telling a story.

Hearing the door open, Tangtang turned her head expectantly.

"Doctor, brother!"

Gu Lin looked down at her, his voice gentle.

"Um?"

For some unknown reason, the little girl suddenly pursed her lips, her voice very soft.

"Brother, am I a lot of trouble?"

Tangtang lowered her head, her fingers tugging at the rabbit's ears.

"Mom has been crying a lot lately."

"Dad isn't smiling anymore either."

"The nurse said I had a lot of blood drawn."

"The doctors come to see me every day."

She paused for a moment, then asked in a low voice.

"Is it because Tangtang is dying?"

In that instant, everyone in the ward felt as if their hearts had been squeezed tightly by something.

Zhao Guofeng suddenly turned his head and took off his glasses.

Tangtang's mother covered her mouth and cried out, while Gu Lin stood still.

Suddenly I remembered that in my previous life, many, many children were like this.

Sometimes, they are far more sensitive than adults imagine.

Gu Lin slowly squatted down, looked at her, and spoke in a gentle voice.

"Candy."

"Um?"

"Do you know why so many doctors are surrounding you?"

The little girl shook her head.

Gu Lin smiled.

"Because the questions you set were too difficult."

"Everyone in the hospital is trying to figure out how to solve this problem."

Tangtang blinked.

"Has it been made yet?"

Gu Lin paused for a second, then reached out and gently rubbed her head.

"Soon."

"And this time..."

"My brother believes he can do the right thing."

Tangtang fell asleep again. Due to repeated high fevers and convulsions, she had become extremely thin. The little girl huddled in the blankets like a gently curled-up shadow.

Zhao Guofeng stood by the bed for a long time before gently tucking the blanket around her, then turned and left the ward.

"Gu Lin, come with me for a moment."

At the end of the corridor, several directors were present.

The director of the rheumatology and immunology department, the director of the neurology department, the deputy director of the pediatrics department, and even people from the medical affairs department came.

Zhao Guofeng looked at Gu Lin with a complicated expression.

"Tell me your thoughts."

Gu Lin was silent for a few seconds, then asked a question.

"If the genetic test is positive, how should the subsequent treatment plan be adjusted?"

The head of the rheumatology and immunology department was stunned for a moment, then his eyes slowly changed.

Because this statement reveals a great deal of information.

When a general practitioner discovers a rare disease, their first thought is to make a diagnosis.

Those who truly have a scientific mindset think about the disease mechanism, why it happens, and how to treat it. Gu Lin clearly belongs to the latter category.

The head of the rheumatology and immunology department got serious.

"If there is a special genetic background, a more aggressive biologic regimen may be needed, or even the entire treatment strategy may need to be adjusted."

Gu Lin nodded and said nothing more.

Two days later, the genetic test results were sent for testing, and the results are expected to take a week.

While waiting for the results, Tangtang's treatment officially began.

High-dose hormones, immunosuppressants, and combination therapy.

The treatment was very effective; on the third day, the body temperature began to drop.

On the fourth day, the convulsions stopped.

On the fifth day, Tangtang was able to sit up on her own for the first time.

The entire pediatrics department breathed a sigh of relief, which meant they were on the right track.