The whole family panicked and went to the hospital after hearing the cry "Mom, I swallowed a screw"

(Dan Tri) - "Mom, I swallowed a screw" - the loud scream of the eldest son startled and frightened Ms. T. and her husband. Without thinking much, the whole family immediately took the boy to the emergency room.

According to the mother, after dinner, the two brothers were playing together when suddenly a screw fell out of a toy. Little P. (2 years old) curiously picked it up to play with and quickly put it in his mouth. Although his older brother discovered it and tried to stop him, the boy swallowed the sharp screw.

At the Emergency Department, doctors quickly examined the child and took an X-ray to determine the exact location of the foreign object. The X-ray image showed a radiopaque foreign object at the level of the 11th rib on the left.

Foreign objects were detected through X-rays (Photo: Hospital).

Immediately afterwards, doctors from the Endoscopy Department performed an endoscopy to remove the foreign object under anesthesia for the child. With the support of a modern system, a 5x6mm screw with a sharp tip was quickly removed by the doctor.

After assessing that the esophageal mucosa was not seriously damaged and the child no longer showed any discomfort after the procedure, the doctor discharged the patient home that same night.

Specialist Doctor Truong Minh Hieu, Head of the Endoscopy Department, who directly performed the surgery to remove the foreign object, said that the intervention process encountered many difficulties because the foreign object was smooth, round, and mixed with food residue, making the operation complicated.

However, thanks to specialized equipment and the smooth coordination of the team, the medical staff successfully handled the situation, removing the foreign object safely without causing damage to the baby's surrounding organs.

The foreign object is a sharp screw removed from the baby's body (Photo: Hospital).

According to Dr. Hieu, children from 6 months to 3 years old are the group of people most likely to have accidents of swallowing or inhaling foreign objects, especially while playing without adult supervision.

Sharp foreign objects entering the body can cause serious damage to the esophagus, stomach, intestines, and even perforation of the intestinal wall or gastrointestinal bleeding if not treated promptly.

To prevent accidents like the above, doctors recommend that parents pay close attention when taking care of their children, and not let their children play alone with small objects, especially toys that can be disassembled into pieces, sharp objects, or easily swallowed.

Parents should also closely supervise children when playing and eating. If you suspect a child has swallowed a foreign object, do not force the child to gag or induce vomiting as this may cause the object to become lodged deeper or move into the airway, endangering life.

Instead, adults should take their children immediately to a specialized medical facility for timely examination and treatment.

Previously, in early June, NDH (14 years old, living in Tay Ninh province) picked his teeth with a toothpick while eating, then went to the refrigerator to pour a drink and accidentally swallowed the toothpick.

At the local hospital, the doctors performed an endoscopy and found no foreign objects, so the child was sent home to take medication and monitor. However, when the child continued to have severe abdominal pain, the family became worried and took the child to a higher-level hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

At Children's Hospital 2, initially, ultrasound doctors did not see any foreign objects, but noted that the baby had intestinal gas, a mild infection in the blood test, continued abdominal pain and fever.

At this time, the doctors ordered the patient to have a CT scan, which showed a long, sharp foreign object with one end penetrating the intestinal wall. The patient was diagnosed with peritonitis and required emergency surgery.

During the laparoscopic surgery, the medical team noted that the foreign object was a toothpick that had penetrated the intestinal wall into the abdominal cavity, containing intestinal fluid. The foreign object was removed and the perforation was sutured. On the 8th day after surgery, the child's health was stable, fever-free, and he was discharged from the hospital.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/ca-nha-hoang-loan-vao-vien-sau-tieng-la-me-oi-em-nuot-oc-vit-roi-20250620081417897.htm