Patient N., a 41-year-old from South Korea suffered a stroke and fell into a deep coma before being rushed to FV Hospital for emergency care. Despite the absence of relatives to authorize treatment, FV’s medical team made every effort to save him at all costs. After 80 days in a vegetative state, Mr. N. miraculously regained consciousness.
A Race Against Time to Save a Stroke Patient
Mr. N., a 41-year-old Korean national, was brought to FV Hospital in May 2024 in a critical, unconscious state. Discovered by security at his apartment complex, he was rushed to the hospital, his skin cold and clammy, with traces of vomit and bodily waste.
Rapid testing revealed Mr N. was suffering from severe hypotension, a brain hemorrhage, a deep coma, brain swelling causing a shift parts of his brain to the left, severe pneumonia, and septic shock. The Accident & Emergency team estimated that his stroke had occurred over 48 hours before he was found.
Dr Nguyen Manh Hung, Head of the Neurosurgery and Endovascular Neurosurgery Department at FV Hospital, assessed the patient’s Glasgow Coma Scale score at a critical 3. While medical guidelines generally discourage surgery in such cases, Dr Hung maintained hope and directed the ICU team to persist with resuscitation efforts.
Dr Nguyen Manh Hung and his team performed brain surgery to save the Korean patient.
An emergency hospital consultation was held, and FV doctors decided to proceed with surgery. With no relatives available to provide consent, Dr Hung personally signed the consent form before heading directly to the operating room. Alongside his team, he performed a craniotomy to remove the hematoma and insert a drain.
The surgery lasted about three hours, successfully clearing the hematoma from the skull. However, the patient remained in a deep coma, and the chances of recovery were uncertain, relying heavily on the post-operative care that would follow.
Holding Onto the Patient’s Life Against All Odds
While treating the patient, FV Hospital made every effort to locate the patient’s family, eventually reaching his father and inviting him to come to Vietnam to support his son. Upon seeing his son in a deep coma, the father lost hope and requested to stop treatment. However, FV Hospital remained steadfast, committed to the patient’s care and recovery. The team held firmly to their belief that every life, regardless of circumstances, is worth saving.
Patient N. remained in a vegetative state for 80 days, during which FV doctors and medical staff worked tirelessly to preserve his life.
While in a vegetative state, the patient’s condition fluctuated significantly, with recurrent fevers from severe infections that posed ongoing threats to his life, including a severe pleural effusion. His treatment required a multidisciplinary approach, involving specialties from Anaesthesiology & ICU, Neurosurgery & Endovascular Neurosurgery, Thoracic, Vascular & Endovascular Surgery, Dietetics & Nutrition, Physiotherapy & Rehabilitation, and Infectious Disease Departments. The FV nursing team also provided continuous, around-the-clock care to support his recovery.
Dr Nguyen Manh Hung from FV Hospital expressed optimism, stating that the patient had a strong potential for cognitive recovery.
Over time, the patient gradually overcame numerous life-threatening crises, showing encouraging signs of recovery: he was taken off the ventilator and transitioned to receiving nutrition through the digestive tract instead of a feeding tube. Then, after 80 days in the hospital, a breakthrough occurred—Mr. N. regained consciousness, demonstrating significant neurological recovery. He became conscious, understood English, and could raise his right hand and grip, despite ongoing weakness due to left-side paralysis from brain damage. “I believe the patient’s cognitive function will recover nearly 100%, but motor function will face challenges and require a lot of time,” Dr Hung assessed.
“It can be said that throughout the treatment process, the hospital was like home, and the healthcare staff were like family,” shared Dr Nguyen Thi Lam Giang – Anaesthesiology & ICU Department. “The doctors treated according to the spirit of medical ethics, and bringing the patient back from the brink of death not just once but multiple times. The principle of saving lives above all else upheld by the FV medical team has successfully preserved a life,”
Currently, the patient is alert and has been transferred to a regular room for continued monitoring and treatment by internal medicine specialists. Dr Vu Truong Son, Acting Medical Director of FV Hospital, noted that the hospital’s management has reached out to the South Korean consulate to arrange the patient’s repatriation. Negotiations are ongoing, and the hospital is waiting for a response from the South Korean consulate to proceed with the discharge, allowing the patient to return home for rehabilitation and further recovery.
