On this day, Wang's mother hurried to consult the general practitioner: "Doctor, my baby is 3 years old, every day I catch something to stuff into my mouth, play small marbles a few days ago, we adults are not optimistic, directly swallowed." We parents are really entangled, go to the hospital in the middle of the night, see him bouncing around like no one, afraid of tossing the child in vain, not going to the hospital, and afraid of what danger. The adults were so frightened that they didn't dare to sleep all night, staring at the child, but fortunately the baby's stool was pulled out the next morning, and we put our minds at ease. If we encounter such a situation next time, how can we deal with it? ”
I believe that this is a common annoyance of many parents, even if it is not a young child, adults are also likely to swallow indigestible objects by mistake, let's learn about it, what to do in this situation?
What is a foreign body of the digestive tract?
Foreign bodies in the digestive tract refer to various objects that cannot be digested in the digestive tract such as the throat, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and large intestine, and have not been excreted in time, thus remaining.
What happens after swallowing a foreign body?
Foreign body catatum in different parts of the digestive tract can lead to a variety of different manifestations.
When a foreign body is in the stomach or intestine, there is no obvious discomfort.
When the foreign body is stuck in the oropharynx and esophagus, the patient's discomfort symptoms are more obvious, which can be manifested as sore throat, increased saliva, and even blood, a sense of obstruction of foreign bodies, difficulty swallowing, and nausea, vomiting, cough, shortness of breath and other symptoms.
When young children and patients with mental illness have foreign bodies in the digestive tract, they often cannot describe the symptoms of discomfort in detail, and through the observation of signs, they can find abnormal manifestations such as refusal to eat, drooling, blood in saliva, vomiting, dyspnea, wheezing, and excessive emotional movements.
Home treatment of foreign bodies in the digestive tract
If the patient has painful sensations or manifestations, such as foreign body obstruction, difficulty swallowing, saliva with blood, difficulty breathing, etc., it is necessary to call 120 for emergency treatment immediately or send to the hospital.
If there is an object nearby that is the same as the foreign body swallowed, it is recommended to take it to the hospital for the doctor's reference.
If the patient has the hand covering the throat, weak breathing, facial bruising, inability to speak, etc., the foreign body may fall from the digestive tract to the airway, and should be treated urgently by the Heimlich method.
It is important to note that if the patient is able to breathe normally, even if the symptoms are uncomfortable, it is not necessary to use the Heimlich method to avoid further injury.
If the patient has no obvious symptoms of pain and the foreign body is stuck in a place where the mouth can be seen, it can be removed immediately by hand. If the foreign body is stuck in an invisible place, do not use your hands to pick the foreign body, so as not to poke deeper and deeper, at this time, you should take different treatment methods for different types of foreign bodies.
Type 1: Blunt objects
The esophageal diameter is 0.6-0 .8cm for infants, about 1 cm for young children, 1.2-1.5 cm for school-age children, and 2.5 cm for adults ≤.
If the foreign body is swallowed as a coin, a small marble and other blunt object with a rounded edge, and the maximum diameter is smaller than the esophageal diameter of the patient's corresponding age, it can be temporarily left untreated, eat normally, observe the feces, and see if the foreign body follows the stool excretion. If you have not discharged yourself for more than 1 week, you will go to the doctor and let the doctor judge the follow-up treatment.
If the diameter of the swallowed foreign body is larger than the esophageal diameter of the patient's appropriate age, seek immediate medical attention.
Type two: Sharp objects
If the swallowed foreign body is a sharp object, it needs to be handled according to the specific situation.
If the swallow is a chicken bone, dentures and other objects, the diameter of the object is smaller than the patient's corresponding age of the esophageal diameter, and found that it has entered the stomach, there is no discomfort, you can temporarily move normally at home, observe the feces, and see if the foreign body follows the feces. Once abdominal pain, vomiting, persistent increase in body temperature, hematemesis, melena and other discomfort, immediately need to seek medical attention.
If the foreign body is stuck in the esophagus, or if the object swallowed is an excessively sharp object such as a paper clip, toothpick, needle, etc., you need to seek medical attention immediately.
Type three: Special types of objects
Such as swallowing some special types of objects, such as corrosive foreign bodies such as batteries, multiple magnetic foreign bodies or magnetic foreign bodies combined with metals, drug bags, etc., are more harmful to the human body and need to go to the hospital immediately to remove them.
In-hospital examination and treatment of foreign bodies of the digestive tract
If the doctor determines that the foreign body is located above the oropharynx oropharynx orophageal entrance, he will first perform a frontoscope and laryngoscopy, and try to remove the foreign body after finding it.
If the doctor determines that the foreign body is located below the entrance of the esophagus, an X or CT test is performed first, and further treatment is carried out as appropriate.
In patients with a foreign body in the upper gastrointestinal tract who have a negative frontoscope, laryngoscope, or imaging test, doctors will perform further gastroscopy and treat problems if they are found.
In patients with a foreign body in the lower gastrointestinal tract and a negative imaging test, the doctor will further perform a colonoscopy, and if a problem is found, it will be treated under colonoscopy.
Particularly severe, difficult-to-remove foreign bodies may also require surgical removal.
If the doctor suspects complications, there are also some adjunctive tests depending on the situation.
Incorrect handling after ingestion of a foreign body
Before determining that the swallowed object is not dangerous to discharge on its own, do not blindly eat and drink water, and do not blindly induce vomiting and pat your back, so as not to scratch or corrode the esophagus.
When accidentally eating an object with an excessive diameter and there are no obvious symptoms of discomfort, do not run and jump vigorously to avoid getting stuck in the intestine.
Tips to avoid eating foreign bodies:
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Guardians of children and people with mental abnormalities should raise their awareness of prevention, educate them not to swallow non-food things casually, and not to exercise, talk, and play while eating.
The elderly should pay attention to avoid swallowing when wearing dentures and eating sticky foods (such as rice cakes and lanterns).
Patients with digestive tract diseases such as the mouth and esophagus should pay attention to chewing carefully and slowly when eating, and actively treat underlying lesions.
Swallowing foreign bodies by mistake is a common problem in daily life, once it happens that many people will be as helpless as Mother Wang, after reading this small article, the next time if you encounter such a situation, is it not in your heart, do not panic when things happen?
END
This article is excerpted from the People's Medical Publishing House
"Family Doctors Around: Recognition and Treatment of Common Symptoms"
Author: Yin Pei
Attending physician of the Department of General Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine
Associate Editor, Family Doctors Around: Recognition and Treatment of Common Symptoms