In a life-saving procedure, doctors from
Wockhardt Hospital, Mira Road, pulled out a 1.5-inch bottle cap from a
7-month-old baby’s throat. Baby Jeet (name changed) suddenly encountered
breathlessness and choked after swallowing the foreign body (FB).
Baby Jeet (name changed), a resident of Mira
Road suddenly developed difficulty in breathing and choked. The baby cried
haplessly. His parents panicked and immediately rushed him to a local doctor
who referred the patient to Wockhardt Hospital, Mira Road.
Dr Neepa Vellimuttam, ENT surgeon at
Wockhardt Hospital, Mira Road, said,
“The patient reached the emergency department, the baby’s CT Scan revealed that
there was a foreign body (FB) lodged in the oropharynx (the part of the throat
at the back of the mouth behind the oral cavity), and hypopharynx which is the
bottom part of the pharynx (throat), occluding the airway.”
The baby was immediately shifted to Paediatric
Intensive Care Unit under Dr Ankit Gupta. After carrying out a few other tests,
the baby was taken to the operation theatre where the baby underwent rigid
bronchoscopy procedure. Foreign body aspiration is accidental and sudden with a
high mortality rate. It is a life-threatening condition and needs timely
intervention.
Dr Neepa explained, “Rigid bronchoscopy is a procedure for removal of
foreign body in an emergency situation. The rigid bronchoscope is also known as
an open tube bronchoscope, open tube, straight bronchoscope, or ventilating
bronchoscope, and is a rigid, straight, hollow metal tube that is available in
several sizes. Through this traditional method, access to the patient’s airway
was gained with the help of optical forceps and camera to pull out the object,
and we were surprised to see a plastic bottle cap measuring 1.5 inch.”
The procedure was performed under general anaesthesia
and lasted for about 5 minutes. The baby was out of danger, shifted in the
general ward, and discharged the next day. The baby has started accepting feeds
now.
“The baby choked and was crying continuously. We
were clueless about the sudden change in his behaviour. Fortunately, the baby
received a prompt treatment at Wockhardt Hospital. We thank the doctors for
helping our baby breathe freely again. We are happy to see our baby pain-free.”
Patient father Raman Kumar (name changed).