More Than a Med

[Vilanne 0]

After trying to explain to a severely radiated patient that his extreme exposure was directly related to the absorption rate of his extreme exposure, several times over, Dr Chalice finally gave up trying to help it make sense to him. This guy had burns on 2/3rds of his body from direct exposure. Vilanne guessed that he was one working within 2-3 meters of whatever caused this exposure.

 

 

If any patients made it through, the amount of exposure clearly was going to limit their ability to pro-create. If they tried, they would definitely have a malformed being that would probably not have any cognitive functions. It was sad, but ever since 1986, effects of this or more exposure were well documented. Too bad it took nearly 50 years for the medical community to get that information from the scientific renegades monitoring it.

 

 

The treatment goal was clear: Prevent further contamination, treat damaged organs, reduce symptoms, flush the blood and other tissues, and last, but not least, manage their pain.

 

 

Dr Chalice wasn't assigned directly to Faldek, Farrington or Garnoopy's case, but she was continuing to monitor them due to the acute radiation syndrome symptoms Garnoopy was so prevalently displaying and concerns of the higher levels the others were breeching. She was also continually monitoring the tests being run on Mele and Silviu.

 

 

Non-Manticore patients were not identified yet, except for the one. No ID was found on the bodies, no tattoos, no scars - well, except for those with flesh-like Romulan ears, some with one, most with both. Others were found with false noses or crowns of the forehead, which covered their arched eyebrows giving the impression of the typical Romulan facial characteristics. All of them were in different disarray of this All Hallo's Eve Party gone bad.

 

 

Signs and symptoms of radiation sickness usually appear with absorbed doses to the whole body of at least 1 Gy (gray). Doses greater than 8 Gy are generally not treated successfully and usually result in death within two days to two or three weeks depending on the duration of the exposure.

 

Everyone exposed had to be isolated and monitored for express track treatment for the illness. None of the patients enjoyed the many hypospray injections being forced on them. The radiation sickness made them vomit as it was, but each injection doubled the effect, then they had to be given a hypo to slow the nausea and diarrhea. The stench in sickbay was awful, even though the air was being cycled and sterilized.

 

Each time Vilanne or the rest of the staff had to update their chart, they would have to compare their current Theta symptoms with that on the ships medical library:

 

Level One radiation sickness Absorbed dose of 1 to 2 Gy may include:

 

§ Nausea and vomiting within 24 to 48 hours

 

§ Headache

 

§ Fatigue

 

§ Weakness

 

Level Two radiation sickness Absorbed dose of 2 to 3.5 Gy, a person may experience:

 

§ Nausea and vomiting within 12 to 24 hours

 

§ Fever

 

§ Hair loss

 

§ Infections

 

§ Vomiting blood

 

§ Bloody stool

 

§ Poor wound healing

 

§ Any signs and symptoms associated with a lower absorbed dose

 

Moderate radiation sickness can be fatal to those most sensitive to radiation exposure.

 

Level Three radiation sickness Absorbed dose of 3.5 to 5.5 Gy can result in:

 

§ Nausea and vomiting less than one hour after exposure to radiation

 

§ Diarrhea

 

§ High fever

 

§ Long / short term psychological disorders (generalized anxiety disorder, major depression or post-traumatic stress disorder just to name a few)

 

§ Any signs and symptoms associated with a lower absorbed dose

 

Severe radiation sickness is fatal about half the time.

 

Level Four radiation sickness Absorbed dose greater than 5.5 to 8 Gy can result in:

 

§ Nausea and vomiting less than 30 minutes after exposure to radiation

 

§ Dizziness

 

§ Disorientation

 

§ Low blood pressure (hypotension)

 

§ Any signs and symptoms associated with a lower absorbed dose

 

Very severe radiation sickness is often fatal.

(modified for Manticore Log for this century, but taken from MayoClinic)

 

No one, no one was still level one - Last check - all of those in containment had elevated at least level two… however, most were level three and some level four. To have this much exposure to everyone that was in the dorsal had to mean an accidental detonation of some sort of radioactive material. Now, whether or not it was a leak in their pipes, or actual explosion was going to have to be determined by security.

 

 

The number of cells being killed every second after this exposure couldn't be calculated, not even by the LCars. Some of the patients had to be

 

 

The lab was synthesizing Arithrazine as fast as they could. The doctors kept ordering more and more, but it wasn't being produced fast enough. Blood tests showed clear abnormal changes in the DNA of most every patient. The level of bone marrow damage was greatest in those that were originally in the dorsal before Manticore staff entered. The doctors were also starting regimens of synthesized filgrastim/pegfilgrastim blend to try and prevent subsequent exposure and counter anything up to that point in the bone marrow. These meds had proven effective in the past for certain types, but the radiation type had not specifically been identified to the medical staff, so they were smattering the patients with every treatment they could endure.

 

 

It seemed useless – non-stop treatments, non-stop negative results – no one was showing progress towards anything but worsening. Why was the Manticore Staff continuing to get sicker? There was an incubation period for symptoms, but the first hour had passed since exposure.

 

 

It was useless to use the Medical Tricorder to try and do a Geiger reading to determine which body location was the radioactive particles was useless, everyone was exposed, everywhere, except the Manticore Staff – who had clean feet.

 

 

Radiation sickness itself wouldn't cause many long-term effects for those that would survive. Getting them to survive something this extreme was the trick.

 

 

Studies in the last century were more informative with respect to stopping some of the contaminators. Vilanne had to find a pattern of these rads, to see what part of the brain it was targeting. The other major problems the staff were trying to repair was Bone marrow, which can be regenerated in some cases, organ lining, including skin regeneration, however, internal organs were going to pose problems. If they stuck a medical tube down anyone's throat, it was more likely that the skin would just come off upon abrasion, before they could begin regeneration.

 

 

Even the new machine wasn't a lot of help with anything more than the topical tissue issues. Skin was one thing; it was all over the body on the exterior. Stomach and intestinal linings purported more problems and warnings than could be read in one sitting.

 

 

Those with severe internal contamination had to have the rad's bound to any of the optional drugs, but couldn't be hypo'd … they needed direct injection to flush their bodies of the toxin.

 

 

Dr Chalice informed Dr Mele about the Level Fours, in between his vomiting spells. There were hopes they could turn this around – provided the lab would keep up the synthesis process and continued exposure did not occur.