Children are curious by nature. They desire to discover things around them through touch, smell, and taste. Hand to mouth phase of development, they will try to put all things in hand into the mouth, also oftentimes other children in the house try to feed hard food material (seeds) to small babies, that is why we very often hear of children swallowing objects that are not meant to be mouthed or eaten.
From coins and buttons to rings and paper clips, toddlers and babies ingest items that seem increasingly curious to them. While most ingested items may not pose a serious problem and are likely to pass through their stools, other items, such as pins, magnets, and button batteries need pediatric emergency care for swallowed items. Further, some objects may get stuck in the child’s oesophagus, stomach, or intestine, requiring professional medical help. At occasions, the small partices might enter wind pipe (bronchus) instead of food pipe which could affect breathing and turn to be life threatening if urgent care is not provided.
Some foreign objects are so small that they may go unnoticed by parents and caregivers. However, children may show signs of discomfort to indicate an ingested item. So, recognizing the symptoms of foreign object ingestion in kids is important to provide pediatric first aid and seek medical attention.
If a foreign object lodges in your child’s oesophagus, you may notice signs of discomfort such as:
In some cases, a swallowed foreign object lodged in the stomach or intestines. Your child may manifest symptoms such as
In some cases, the small objects can enter wind pipe (bronchus) instead of food pipe, which can be life threatening at times. The symptoms will be as follows
If you notice any symptoms of foreign object ingestion in kids, like choking, it is important to provide pediatric first aid for ingestion before seeking medical emergency care.
On the other hand, if there is no apparent choking from the child swallowing objects, seek pediatric emergency care in a good hospital. The doctor will suggest an X-ray to determine the location of the ingested object. Some objects like button batteries, magnets, and sharp objects, can be very dangerous and may require immediate removal to avoid long term complications. Doctors may also perform an endoscopy to remove objects stuck between the mouth and the throat.
If you notice symptoms of foreign object ingestion in kids, immediately rush to the best pediatric hospital in Bangalore, Kinder Hospital at Whitefield. Our team of top pediatricians in Whitefield, Bangalore, handles complex emergency pediatric cases with expertise.
At Kinder Hospitals Bangalore, we have the most advanced pediatric intensive care unit, catering to emergency and postoperative care for children and adolescents with severe medical conditions. Trust Kinder Hospitals Bangalore for the best pediatric care.
