Mangaluru: A 28-year-old woman accidentally swallowed a scarf pin and was brought to Yenepoya medical college hospital Casualty at around 3 pm with breathing difficulty and suffering pain in the neck.

After taking an X-ray of the neck, doctors located the pin in the trachea which had pricked the windpipe. For further treatment, the case was referred to the ENT department. The patient was shifted immediately to the operation theatre for emergency bronchoscopy. With the combined efforts of ENT doctors under Dr Deekshith RM (senior resident), Dr Jasim, Dr Amrutha (junior residents) and anaesthetist Dr Habib Rahman (Professor) and Dr Aejaz (Assistant professor), the pin was successfully extracted from the bronchus without any complications. The patient was sent home two days after the observation.

Dr Deekshith Rajmohan says foreign body aspiration though uncommon in the windpipe, at times is life-threatening if not treated immediately. It’s a life-saving procedure and challenging for both the surgeon and the Anaesthetist. With the immediate action of treatment and the Almighty’s grace, it was possible to save a life.

DrVijayalakshmi, Professor and HOD Department of ENT mentioned sharp foreign bodies are more dangerous as they can pierce surrounding structures in and around the neck. It can even migrate and technically be more challenging to extract.