This is an automatically translated article.
The article was consulted with Specialist Doctor Ear - Nose - Throat Doctor - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Hai Phong International Hospital.
Foreign body in the airways is the most common emergency in otolaryngology, if not diagnosed and treated quickly, can easily lead to dangerous complications, even death.
1. What is an airway foreign body?
Airway foreign bodies are objects that get stuck in the patient's airway from the larynx to the bronchi. This is an ENT emergency that is more common in children than adults (75% in children under 4 years old), because children often have a habit of putting objects in their mouth and their airway protection reflex has not yet been established.
Common causes of airway foreign bodies are:
Babies cry or laugh while eating. Children often suck on objects while playing. Throat reflex disorder in comatose, anaesthetic, or insane patients
2. Symptoms of airway foreign body
Regarding systemic symptoms, depending on the location of the foreign body in the airway, the patient has different symptoms.
Shortness of breath: In the early stages, patients often experience shortness of breath. If the foreign body is in the larynx, the patient has symptoms of laryngeal dyspnea of varying degrees depending on the size of the foreign body and the time the foreign body stays in the airway. If the object is large, it can cause 2nd, 3rd degree laryngeal dyspnea, or may cause asphyxiation, if the object is smaller, it may cause mild laryngeal dyspnea. Mixed dyspnea may be present due to foreign bodies located in the lower trachea or bronchi, and patients often present with coughs and dyspnea on exertion or at rest. Fever: Common after a few days after being infected by contaminated foreign bodies such as bones, meat, peanuts, bagasse... Functional symptoms of the patient also depend on the location of the foreign object. However, clinically, there are different signs:
Foreign bodies in the larynx: Objects stuck in the larynx are usually flat, sharp objects, ... such as eggshells, shrimp heads, fish bones. .. Common symptoms of hoarseness, loss of voice, the degree of hoarseness depends on the size of the foreign body and the time the foreign body stays in the larynx. Laryngeal dyspnea: If a large foreign body can block the larynx, making the patient difficult to breathe in the larynx, sometimes acute asphyxiation. Cough: Patients often have a dry cough without phlegm, coughing in long bursts due to irritation of the larynx makes the larynx swell, making breathing difficult. Foreign bodies in the trachea: Foreign bodies are usually round, smooth, smooth objects... the size is quite large compared to the diameter of the trachea. Patients often have a dry cough, choking, cyanosis due to moving foreign objects in the trachea, sometimes moving up the larynx, causing coughing attacks. If the foreign body moves up the larynx and gets stuck in the glottis, it will cause the patient to stop breathing, if not treated promptly, the patient will die. Bronchial foreign body: Mixed dyspnea is common when a large foreign body obstructs the main bronchus on one side. Fever: Depending on the degree of inflammation in the lungs, the patient may have a moderate fever or a high fever.
3. How dangerous is a foreign body in the airway?
Airway allergies can cause many dangerous complications, depending on the type of foreign body, the age of the patient and how early or late it is treated.
The younger the patient, the more dangerous. Sometimes the foreign body is removed quickly but still cannot save the child because of very severe acute bronchitis.
In case the patient is taken to the hospital early, it will be easier to remove the foreign body, causing less complications, but if the patient is late, the patient has an inflammatory reaction, edema, and many complications will occur. foreign body removal is more difficult and the risk of death is higher. Some common complications caused by foreign bodies in the airways are: breathing obstruction, death due to acute asphyxia, bronchitis, bronchopneumonia, atelectasis, lung abscess, emphysema due to rupture of the abscess into the membrane. pneumothorax, pneumothorax, mediastinum, bronchiectasis due to long forgotten foreign body, laryngeal stenosis scars.
Ideally, when experiencing a foreign body in the airway, the patient should immediately go to a good medical facility for quick and correct treatment, ensuring a survival prognosis as well as minimizing sequelae.
The Emergency Department of Vinmec International General Hospital operates 24/24 on all days of the week, including Saturday and Sunday as well as holidays of the year. Accordingly, the team of emergency doctors and nurses at the Department are intensively and professionally trained, able to receive and handle urgent cases of patients, and always have coordination with all specialists. faculty quickly.
With modern equipment and a team of experienced doctors, the Emergency Department has conducted emergency and saved the lives of serious and complicated patients, pediatric diseases with foreign bodies with poor prognosis. At the same time, patients at the Emergency Department are always coordinated care by many other specialized specialties (Team Base Care). Therefore, at the Emergency Department, patients will be examined, diagnosed, accurately and quickly, with high reliability and intensive treatment right from the emergency stage to help them quickly get out of the critical stage. dramatic and stable.
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