The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim - Chapter 125

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 125

“You seem to know each other. Would you like to go in together?”

At Seol Yuhui’s question, Kang Jaekyung and Song Wonjong answered simultaneously.

“Ah, let’s do that. Boss, is that alright with you?”

“Of course! It just so happens that both of you have wrist problems, haha.”

It hadn’t been that long since we last met, but Song Wonjong’s expression was much brighter.

“Song Wonjong, it’s been a while. I see you’re being called ‘boss’ – did you open a new business?”

“Mr. Song Wonjong, it’s been a while. I see you’re being called the boss now—did you open a new business?”

“Haha, yes. That’s what happened. I should have told you right away, but I’ve been so busy with the opening. It’s all thanks to you.”

Seeing someone who had always been on the verge of death laugh so heartily made me feel good too.

“Uhaha, you’re too kind. When I was closing down my business last time, I thought I was going to die, but I gained courage while getting my stomach treated here.”

“I’m really enjoying the food. Thank you for opening near the live club.”

“Hahaha, you flatter me. When my business went under last time, I thought I was going to die, but getting treatment here gave me the courage to go on.”

“What did I even do? It turned out well because it’s delicious.”

“Yes, that’s right. I’m in charge of drums.”

And as I expected, Kang Jaekyung was indeed a member of the same band as Kim Taeyun.

Hmm, that really does look like a motion that would be bad for the wrists.

“Oh… that’s cool. You’re more popular than Taeyun, right?”

He waved both hands and struck a pose as if playing the drums.

Hmm, that looks like a movement that would really be bad for the wrists.

Huh, Kim Taeyun is more popular?

“Oh… that’s amazing. You’re more popular than Taeyoon, aren’t you?”

“It’s not easy to beat the popularity of vocals.”

“Tone it down? You mean that sketchbook?”

“Of course he did.”

“If his voice is that good, I’d like to hear it sometime. Ah, your drumming too, of course, Jaekyung.”

I thought this guy would be the popular choice since he’s a conventionally handsome pretty boy who’s styled nicely.

I had planned to go see a performance next time, but I haven’t had time due to business trips.

I promised to definitely stop by soon and asked him to give my regards to Kim Taeyun as well.

“By the way, it’s quite a coincidence that you both use your wrists a lot. Song Wonjong, when did yours start bothering you?”

After appropriately wrapping up the small talk, I asked Song Wonjong, who was sitting in front of me, when his symptoms first started.

“I’m just, you know, ordinary.”

“That’s quite a while?”

“It’s good to run when the tide comes in, but if you want to go long-term, you need to take care of your body. Your wrists are your greatest asset. Let me take a look. Can you point to where it hurts?”

I heard you’ve signed with a major agency lately and are doing big shows and preparing an album – at this rate, we might not be able to see you at live clubs anymore?

I promised to visit soon and asked him to give my regards to Kim Taeyoon as well.

It was where the tendons of the Abductor Pollicis Longus muscle, Extensor Pollicis Brevis muscle, and Extensor Pollicis Longus muscle pass through, and where the radial artery can be palpated.

“This is where it hurts?”

Since this is also the location that becomes painful when there’s a scaphoid bone fracture, one of the wrist bones, I was startled and applied the ultrasound probe.

“Hmm, fortunately the bone seems fine.”

I moved the probe up and down to examine the condition of the ligaments and tendon sheaths.

“This looks like tenosynovitis.”

I put down the probe and palpated the anatomical snuffbox with my hand.

“Ugh.”

“Yes. I think so.”

Since this is also the location where pain occurs when there’s a fracture of the scaphoid bone, one of the wrist bones, I was startled and decided to do an ultrasound examination.

I told him the elbow joints and ligaments were also fine. The forearm muscles were naturally stiff from heavy hand use, though.

“It is tenosynovitis. The other parts aren’t severe, so they’ll settle down after one or two treatments, but the inflammation here is bad.”

I brought up a picture of the tendons that make up the wrist on the computer.

“This looks like hay fever?”

“You mean the membrane is inflamed?”

“Ugh.”

It involves wrapping the thumb with the other fingers to make a fist, then bending the wrist downward toward the pinky finger to check for pain.

“Ah, so when I do this, the membrane touches the tendon and it hurts!”

“Uh…”

He said the elbow joint and ligaments were fine too. The forearm muscles were naturally stiff from heavy use of the hands, though.

“It’s tendinitis. The other areas aren’t too severe, so they should settle down with one or two treatments, but the inflammation here is quite bad.”

I pulled up photos of the tendons that make up the wrist on my computer.

The muscles that make up the forearm narrow into tendons around the wrist area, and these are covered by a thin membrane called the tendon sheath.

“This is a tendon sheath. It has a two-layer structure that allows tendons to move smoothly. The inside is filled with fluid, and when inflammation occurs, excessive synovial fluid is produced.”

“Are you saying there’s inflammation in the membrane?”

“That’s right. It hurts every time the hay is compressed while I’m working with my hands.”

I performed Finkelstein’s test, a physical examination to check for wrist tenosynovitis.

This involves wrapping the thumb with the other fingers to make a fist, then bending the wrist downward toward the pinky finger to check for pain.

“Ah, so this is why it hurts when the membrane touches the tendon!”

“Yes. Right now I deliberately induced the pain for examination purposes. Don’t bend your wrist at this angle normally, as it will irritate the inflammation.”

“Uh….”

Song Wonjong hesitated, unable to give a ready answer that he understood.

“Does this angle come up a lot when you work?”

“I suppose so. Especially when cutting with a knife, my wrist bends like this and force goes into my thumb too.”

“Oh my.”

I said while releasing Song Wonjong’s arm.

“You need to use the strength of your entire arm rather than just your wrist. Keep your wrist straight without bending it, and even if it’s uncomfortable at first, wear a brace while working. It hasn’t been going on for too long yet, but if it becomes chronic, it’ll be painful.”

Didn’t he say he had quite a bit of cooking experience?

It seemed no one had ever corrected his knife-holding posture. Or maybe he had been corrected but it had become a habit.

Previously, I had mainly seen knife wielders who used knives other than kitchen knives, but the point about not using the wrist was consistent.

Even a little strain on tendons and tendon sheaths causes inflammation and wears down joints.

But before it hurts, when you’re still strong, you don’t know. Using wrist snap is comfortable, so why are they making such a fuss, you grumble.

“Will it be fine if I get treatment for a while like with the esophagitis last time?”

When problems arise with one’s means of making a living, belated worry growing is a predetermined sequence.

“For pain relief, it’s best to come as frequently as possible. Considering you’ll be treating it while still using it, the healing speed will be slower. It’s unreasonable to not use it at all, but avoid using it as much as you can. Also, occupational diseases recur frequently, so you need to come right away even if it gets just a little worse and manage it consistently.”

“Understood.”

Feeling a sense of crisis, Song Wonjong nodded very solemnly.

“Let’s have you two switch places. Kang Jaekyung, since when have you been having problems?”

“…It’s been almost a year for me. I wonder if it’s the same condition, but it seems to have already become chronic.”

“Is it the same location?”

“Yes, my thumb is the worst. My index, middle, and ring fingers are numb, but the thumb is the worst.”

“Ah, you have numbness?”

Then it’s unlikely to be tenosynovitis?

Numbness and tingling are usually patterns related to nerves.

Inflammation of tendons or the tendon sheaths surrounding them manifests as pain and swelling.

“Do you also have trouble with strength? On the palm side rather than the back of your hand?”

“Ah, that’s right. How did you know? I couldn’t get strength in and even dropped my sticks during practice yesterday.”

“Is that why Kim Taeyun…?”

“He made a huge fuss telling me to go get treatment right away.”

Kang Jaekyung let out a deep sigh.

Even if he doesn’t force others as much as he’s perfect with himself, dropping sticks is quite alarming.

And it’s been a whole year.

“This is a different condition from Song Wonjong’s. It’s called carpal tunnel syndrome. There’s a small tunnel-shaped passage inside your wrist where the median nerve passes through, and when it narrows or gets compressed and pressed, problems like numbness and weakness occur.”

“Oh, I think I’ve heard of that.”

The person who answered was Song Wonjong.

“It happens a lot to chefs and housewives too. Anyone who uses their hands a lot is exposed to the risk.”

Kang Jaekyung nodded and pressed the inside of his wrist.

Rather than pressing like that, it’s easier to just bend the wrist.

“The Finkelstein test that Song Wonjong found painful earlier is okay for you, right?”

“Hmm, it feels a bit stiff, but it doesn’t hurt like it did for the boss.”

“Carpal tunnel syndrome is reproduced when you bend your wrist toward your palm. Try bending it 90 degrees and putting the backs of your hands together.”

I taught him the Phalen test.

He initially thought it was easy and took the position, but after about 10 seconds, he quickly felt numbness.

“My right hand is really tingling.”

“Kang Jaekyung, you should avoid that position. Don’t stay in a bent position for long, and stretch by extending your wrist during breaks in practice.”

“Understood.”

And like with Song Wonjong, I thoroughly checked the tender points of ligaments on the back of his hand, palm, and wrist, as well as his forearm and elbow.

“Ugh, ah! Oh, that hurts too.”

His condition was much worse than Song Wonjong’s.

While numbness was the biggest problem, tendon inflammation was also present in various places.

“When it’s been going on for a long time, one area weakens and other areas eventually develop problems too. Plus, drums are probably hit hard with rebound, so they’re likely to rupture easily.”

“Yes…”

“You must break this vicious cycle now to prevent it from getting worse. The treatment method is similar. Minimize use as much as possible, and frequent treatment. You do use a brace, right?”

“…I have one.”

“Use it.”

Kang Jaekyung nodded with a tearful expression.

“Um, about minimizing use. It would be better to not use it at all normally, right?”

“Of course that would be good. But not everyone can do real silent practice like Taeyun. You shouldn’t do things like ping pong or bowling, but for daily use, just be careful within your limits.”

How can you not use your right hand at all?

You have to work, eat, and play gacha games too.

I can’t threaten them to absolutely forbid even that. I’ll just have to treat them well, taking into account that it’ll heal a bit slower.

“I won’t use it. Taeyun did it too.”

Huh?

But Kang Jaekyung’s face hardened.

Did I… accidentally touch his pride?

“I won’t drive, and I won’t hold my smartphone with my right hand from now on. I’ll eat with my left hand too.”

“You don’t need to be that extreme…”

“Then I’ll follow that example too! It’s my livelihood, so I should have that level of determination. I’ll only do lower body exercises for a while, and I won’t play games that use the mouse a lot!”

Moreover, Song Wonjong clenched his left hand and expressed his determination.

No, this person used to not even get treatment properly before. What on earth influenced him?

Did Kim Taeyun cast a spell?

“Yes. If you would do that, it would certainly help greatly with the treatment. I’ll treat you well so that we can keep the time you need to refrain from using it as short as possible.”

Unable to stop the two men whose eyes were burning with passion, I nodded.

They’re much better than those disobedient bastards who keep practicing even when told not to, damn it.

“Then let’s go straight to the Treatment Room.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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