"How's the pediatric department doing lately?" Liu Banxia asked.

"It's okay. With the hot weather, parents are more attentive, so kids don't catch colds as easily," Chen Hongyang replied.

"Actually, for us in pediatrics, there's really no off-season or peak season. As long as there's no influenza outbreak, the situation is usually about the same. Once influenza hits, it gets crowded instantly."

"Usually, when they come in, it's with a small team. If the kindergarten is more responsible, it's better. They do basic physical examinations for the kids every morning, which helps avoid issues."

"How's your wife doing? Having two babies isn't easy at all. When ours came along, we went through quite a lot."

"It's manageable now, but it's still tough. She's afraid of overheating, so we don't dare to turn on the air conditioning at home. We bought a fan that blows against the wall," Liu Banxia said.

"Her movements are already becoming inconvenient, but she's the kind of person who loves to be active. These days, she just plays with the puppies at home, but it's quite boring."

"We have to push through; what else can we do?" Chen Hongyang said.

"Try to keep your mood pleasant; otherwise, you'll be the one suffering. Taking care of kids is already exhausting, so don't add to it."

Liu Banxia nodded, "That's something we must ensure."

After chatting for a while, the young parents brought their child back.

"Dr. Chen, the doctor who looked at the CT said it's negative, nothing's there," the baby's father said.

Chen Hongyang took the film and examined it closely, then looked at Liu Banxia.

"Let me do a preliminary examination and see if there are any changes," Liu Banxia said.

The little baby's energy really wasn't good; his right eyelid was slightly drooping. Although Liu Banxia didn't have formal experience in taking care of children, he had seen Doudou's antics.

He knew that at this stage, babies are never still unless they're asleep; arms and legs are always in motion.

But this little baby was different; he was "well-behaved." He seemed curious about Liu Banxia's stethoscope and even stretched out his little hand to touch his tummy.

"Is he usually very lively?" Liu Banxia asked.

The baby's mother nodded, "He wakes up very early every day, and cries loudly if he doesn't see anyone. This morning he didn't cry, which worried us."

"How about his diet? Any changes?" Liu Banxia continued to inquire.

"He's always been breastfed, though recently he's had some formula. As for solid food, just some fruit and vegetable puree, fish and shrimp puree; he's always eaten well," the baby's father answered.

"Usually he eats a bit right after waking up, but not today. Um...over the past couple of days, he's actually eaten less than usual."

Liu Banxia reached out a finger to touch the baby's hand, just a symbolic gesture.

Ding! Task issued: The Baby Who Doesn't Like to Move

Open task: At the request of pediatrician Chen Hongyang, consult on a baby who's showing signs of poor health and inactivity, requiring further examination to determine the cause. Task rewards will be given based on the diagnostic outcome.

Even though a task popped up, Liu Banxia wasn't even slightly pleased.

Diagnosing a baby's condition is extremely difficult. Where he feels unwell isn't clearly indicated, only bit by bit examination can rule things out.

"Dr. Chen, what do you think is going on? I just listened to his heart, lung sounds, bowel sounds, and they all seemed normal," Liu Banxia asked.

"I can't really tell either; they don't have any family history of hereditary diseases," Chen Hongyang replied.

"But it seems the baby's condition has worsened compared to when he first arrived. I suspect the illness has progressed."

"Judging by current observations, there hasn't been any change in diet or lifestyle, but there seems to be some level of neurological impact, right?"

"Looking at limb movement, it's not a case of symmetrical paralysis. So it's hard to make an immediate judgment. What do you think should be the next step in examination?"

Liu Banxia furrowed his brows, logically, the examination should be more comprehensive. But this is a baby, and the more tests conducted, the greater the harm to the child.

What might be a minor issue could turn major with more examination items.

At this moment, Liu Banxia noticed that the little fellow's mouth had been open for a while, so he took out the stethoscope again, re-examining the lungs and neck.

"There's a very faint noise in the throat, but it doesn't seem like something is stuck. If there were, he wouldn't be this calm," Liu Banxia said.

After saying this, he coaxed the child to open his mouth and conducted a preliminary examination of the throat.

If this were an adult, the examination would take minutes. They'd open their mouth on command, press the tongue with a depressor, shine a light, and everything would be visible.

But the little one doesn't understand any of that; this seemingly simple examination took nearly half an hour.

This is also the frustration of being a pediatrician. When examining little ones, you can't control the time at all. You can't forcefully manipulate a child's jaw, or you might cause even more damage.

"There doesn't seem to be any issue, and the tonsils don't have symptoms of inflammation," Liu Banxia said, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"It shouldn't be a bronchial or lung issue either. With someone this little, it's tough to perform an endoscopy. Otherwise... there seems to be a small problem with his left leg."

Liu Banxia paused halfway, then lifted the little one's left leg, weighing it in his hand. The child just curiously glanced at it, still playing with his right leg.

It's quite clear that the movements of the left leg and the right leg are not coordinated, and the left leg's response isn't as good as the right leg's.

"It can indeed be determined as a neurological lesion," Liu Banxia said after putting the little one's leg down.

"Then let's go ahead with a cranial MRI to check the situation inside his brain," Dr. Chen said.

"Will the little guy cooperate? I bet it took a long time for the CT scan," Liu Banxia said with a wry smile.

"He's constantly fidgeting. Doctor, is it serious?" the child's father asked worriedly.

"Currently, we can only ascertain that the little one might have some degree of neurological lesions, especially as his right eyelid and left leg are showing more severe symptoms," Dr. Chen said.

"The only thing that reassures us a bit is that we've ruled out thymoma. If it were thymoma, there would be symptoms of a myasthenic crisis, not like what we see now," Liu Banxia added.

"But in a situation like this, it's safer to do a head CT or MRI. The MRI is louder, but it's more accurate."

"He definitely won't tolerate the noise," the child's mother said.

"Actually, I wanted to do a cranial CT while we were doing the chest CT, but was worried that the baby wouldn't cooperate and we wouldn't be able to capture effective images," Dr. Chen said.

Though he said it helplessly, that's just the current situation. The baby isn't crying or fussing, but he must feel uncomfortable to some extent.

It really is necessary to conduct a head examination to ensure there are no lesions in the brain.

However, there are also many challenges before us. We can't predict how long this examination will take. The little one won't just obediently lie there, and we can't have someone play with him to attract his attention.

"It's a bit of a headache. Is every little patient you see like this?" Liu Banxia asked after the parents left.

Dr. Chen nodded, "Yes, it's always like this. We basically rely on guesswork. Even the information provided by the parents isn't always accurate."

"But considering that children often won't express themselves, it's often only in painful areas that they can give some clear indications."

"This little guy, he's really difficult," Liu Banxia sighed.

"What can we do? Once you're in this field, you have to have the right disposition," Dr. Chen said.

"We should study this little patient. Do you have any thoughts? I've never seen anything similar in the cases I've handled," he continued.

Liu Banxia shook his head decisively, "I'm equally in the dark right now, but I can tell his symptoms of muscle weakness are different from the traditional sense of weakness."

"I suspect the nervous system is affected, and as you said, the condition has progressed. Looking at it this way, the progression is quite rapid."

"There hasn't been any change in recent diet or lifestyle, could it be some congenital disease? Maybe the parents didn't undergo premarital screening and are unaware?"

"But prenatal screenings are usually done during pregnancy. If there were issues, some of it should have been detected, right?" Dr. Chen asked.

"I'm not sure either, but it seems the child's condition is currently in an acute phase," Liu Banxia said.

"Alright then, give me the smallest size of intubation. I'll go along, in case there's any display of a myasthenic crisis, we'll need emergency intubation," Liu Banxia suggested.

"Will that happen?" Dr. Chen asked.

"I don't know either, but it's just a precaution. After all, he is showing some signs of respiratory difficulty, so it's better to be prepared," Liu Banxia explained.

"If it really happens, intubating someone so small isn't easy. Following along during the examination might provide more clarity on the situation."

"It's really strange without any inflammation signs. We need some clues, so we can investigate accordingly."

"Right now, there's slight respiratory difficulty, abnormality in the right eyelid, and left leg muscle. It's best you come along," Dr. Chen observed.

Liu Banxia nodded.

This is a preventive measure based on Liu Banxia's judgment. The infant's symptoms are progressing so fast that no one knows what the next risk might be.

If it indeed affects the airway, it could become very dangerous.

This is a little baby, sometimes even when they feel discomfort, they may not express it.