Mumbai doctors remove pushpin stuck near boy’s lungs in delicate surgery

X-ray of the boy. PICS/BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

A 13-year-old boy landed in Juhu's Cooper Hospital straight from his school due to continuous coughing around Friday [March 6] afternoon. After the X-ray report, doctors confirmed the presence of a foreign object near his lungs.

The boy had accidentally swallowed a pushpin after hiding it in his mouth. He hid it in order to avoid being caught by his teacher while he was play pricking with his classmates.

Dr Shashikant Mhashal

The pin went down his windpipe and got stuck near his lungs, leading to non-stop coughing. The child was admitted to the hospital promptly, which saved him from further severe damage to the lungs.

Doctor Shashikant Mhashal from the ENT department of Cooper Hospital shared that it was a bit of a complicated case, as the pin was stuck with the pointy side up.

Retrieved push pin

"I operated [alongside Dr Vinod Gite, Dr Anita Shetty, and the team] in a minimally invasive way, entering through the patient's oral cavity with a rigid bronchoscope, maintaining the right ventilation for the lungs and correct anaesthesia. The child was relieved from the OT within half an hour," said Dr Mhashal.

Symptoms of foreign objects in body

• Foul smelling discharge from one side of the nose
• Continuous coughing
• Sudden breathlessness

Dr Mhashal's advisory

Such cases are very frequent for children, especially for ages 2-6. In my career, I have had foreign object cases ranging from pins to toy, light bulbs to watch cells. Watch cell cases are the most urgent of all as upon ingestion, there is greater risk.

Mar 6
Day the incident occurred